


Promise

by telekinetic_hedgehog



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Angst, Canon-typical Kylo Creepiness, Carbonite, Comfort, Competent Finn, Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, F/F, Femslash, Force Healing, Hostage Situations, Hurt/Comfort, Jedi Finn, Jedi Rey, Lightsabers, Loss of Limbs, M/M, Major Character Injury, Male-Female Friendship, No Major Character Death, Prisoner of War, Protective Finn, Self-Sacrifice, Serious Injuries, Smut, Torture, Tribadism, Waterboarding, Whump, original trilogy spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2017-07-09
Packaged: 2018-08-22 20:36:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 20,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8300092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/telekinetic_hedgehog/pseuds/telekinetic_hedgehog
Summary: "Whatever they threaten me with, you don’t give them anything, got it? You wouldn’t talk if it was you under torture, and I’d hope it’s the same for me. We both went into this war aware of the risks. I need to know that no matter what they do to me, you won’t cooperate.” He nods slowly. “All right. I promise. And you promise the same for me?”





	1. Chapter 1

Rey spins her staff and blocks Finn’s swing, laughing as the Force and the thrill of sparring make her feel alive. She thrusts, careful not to touch either end of the staff that’s standing in for her double-bladed lightsaber, and with a flurry of quick strokes edges him back towards a cluster of trees near the edge of the sunny field. The thwack of their practice weapons and the occasional grunt of effort are the only disruptions of the silence in this otherwise-peaceful place.

With a deep breath, Finn centers himself in the Force before attacking, striking with broad, elegant sweeps. Rey deflects his strokes, finding herself in the zone where instinct takes over and her mind clears and focuses. She’s here, in this moment, in her own body, striking and parrying and locking blades only to break apart and strike again as they feel for each other’s weakness. She and Finn are well-matched and insanely competitive, and sparring with him takes all of her concentration.

A strike she doesn’t block quite in time breaks the spell, a blow to her elbow sending her stumbling back against the warm grass.

“Rey! Are you okay?” Finn’s next to her in an instant, his makeshift saber thrown aside.

“Yeah, I’m fine! Guess you win this round. Best two out of three?”

“Mind if I heal you first?”

“Go for it.”

Secretly, Rey isn’t bothered by the bruise that’s forming on her arm-- growing up on Jakku, she got plenty of bruises defending her finds from other scavengers, and she took pride in her ability to both give hits and take them. But when one of your best friends, who was raised only to kill and hurt and destroy, discovers he can heal with just a touch of his hand and delights in practicing every chance he gets, you don’t just turn him down.

Finn places his hands over the bruise and closes his eyes. Rey’s arm tingles with the energy he’s sending into her, and the pain subsides.

“Thanks, Finn.”

He takes a look at the healed spot and beams. “Don’t mention it.”

She stands up and extends her arm to him. “Ready to lose this time?”

Finn takes her hand and lets her pull him to his feet. “Oh, you’re on!”

“Rey! Finn!” Luke Skywalker’s voice calls from the entrance to the path. “The strategy meeting is over, and they decided to have the pilots leave within the hour. I thought you might want to say goodbye to your loved ones before they fly out.”

“Thanks, Luke!” Finn says as he and Rey take off down the path towards the base.

When they arrive at the hangar, Jess and Poe run to greet them. Finn meets Poe halfway, and they throw their arms around each other. Poe laughs with joy as Finn lifts him off the ground and spins him around. Jess pulls Rey close and kisses her before taking her hand.

“So Luke said you guys were about to ditch us for space again?” Rey teases.

“Yeah, sorry for the short notice,” Poe apologizes. “We just found out about a possible First Order base being set up in an asteroid belt in the next star system over, and we’ve gotta nip it in the bud before they move in and start attacking from there.”

“Pilots only? You guys decided you didn’t need Jedi?” asks Finn.

 _“This_ pilot needs _this_ Jedi.” Poe pulls his husband into a kiss.

“Eww, you’re giving me cavities.” Jess rolls her eyes at Rey. “We would never be that cheesy, would we?”

Rey laughs. “Never.”

“But yeah, just pilots on this one.” Jess says. “It should be a pretty simple, quick mission, if our intel is right. We’ll be back in time for dinner.” She winks at Rey, who almost blushes thinking of what they have planned for that night after dinner and gives her lover an eager smile.

“Yeah, it’s pizza night. I wouldn’t miss it.” Poe adds. BB-8 rolls up behind him and beeps. “Well, it’s time to start rounding everybody up and get out of here.”

“You’re gonna make sure my husband makes it home safe, right Jess?” Finn asks.

“You’re nuts if you think anybody can hold back his reckless streak, but I’ve got his six, I can promise you that much. I’ve saved his life, what? Sixteen times now?”

Poe nods. “Sounds about right.” He looks at Rey. “And I’ll do my best to bring Jess home safely, too.”

“What do you think, Finn? Should we make them pinky promise?” Rey smiles mischievously at Finn.

“Definitely.” Finn sticks out his little finger, and first Jess and then Poe squeeze theirs with it. “See you in a few hours, then. Don’t be late for dinner!”

Jess leans in for another hug with Rey. “See you in a few hours.”

“See you then, love.”

Poe and Finn share a quick hug. “I love you, sweetheart,” says Finn. 

“Love you, too, darling.”

Rey wonders, as Jess and Poe climb into their X-wings and prepare to take off, if it ever gets easier watching someone you love leave to put themselves in danger. Sure, it’s not supposed to be a dangerous mission, and Jess is a mind-blowingly skilled pilot. But anything could happen up there. She takes a deep breath and tries to surrender her worry to the vast peace of the Force.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Jess double-checks her coordinates and flips the switch to send Blue Three into hyperspace. Her astromech, DD-6, chirps at her that they’ll arrive in 16 minutes at the asteroid belt where the First Order is setting up their base. 16 minutes? No wonder they need to take these guys out, if they’re daring to come that close to the Resistance base.

When the squadron pulls out of hyperspace, they come upon a wide sea of floating rocks. One of them stands out for being much bigger than the others, several kilometers across.

“Okay, team, see that huge asteroid?” says Poe over the comm. “Let’s go in for a closer look.”

“Copy, Black Leader,” she answers, and she’s right behind him as they go in near the surface.

It’s uneven and covered in holes, but there’s nothing there to suggest a First Order base, even though they circle the asteroid’s entire circumference.

Red Two speaks up: “Black Leader, I’m not seeing anything. Do you think it’s another asteroid, or is it possible our information’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure,” Poe answers. “Let’s do another pass. I’m going to try to get closer to the deep crater on the darker side.”

They circle the asteroid again, and Jess trails Black One closely. When Poe goes deep into the dark crater, she can see it’s not a crater at all-- it’s a tunnel. BB-8 and DD-6 send out a bounce pulse to measure how deep the tunnel goes, and it looks like it goes directly into the heart of the rock.

“Aha! Looks like we’ve found our hidden base, Black Leader,” Jess comms.

“Nice work! I’m going in.”

“Right behind you.”

Several other pilots echo her, and they nosedive into the crater in single file. The tunnel is more of a maze than anything, and soon it’s too dark to see anything except the glow of Black One’s engines in front of her. She’s flying blind for several minutes, relying on her navigation panels, when suddenly they go dark.

“Dee-Dee, what’s going on?”

The droid doesn’t answer. The engine goes silent and still. Jess feels for a few buttons and switches in the blind-black darkness, but nothing happens-- Blue Three is no longer under her control.

Slowly, the ship turns a corner into a bright cave, and Jess blinks in the light. A tractor beam sets her down as she tries to figure out what’s going on.

Several meters away, Black One is grounded, similarly incapacitated, and Poe is kneeling on the ground with his hands raised in surrender. He’s looking over at her anxiously. Jess can make out the outline of several laser cannons pointed at her and realizes they’re not going to be able to fight their way out of this. _Kriff_.

Her comm fizzles on: “If you value your commander’s life, you’re going to exit your ship with your hands up. Don’t try anything. Understood?”

Jess’s stomach tightens. “Understood.”

She unbuckles her seatbelt and pulls off her helmet. The top of her x-wing opens, and she climbs out, careful to keep her hands in plain sight, and drops to the floor of the cave. She shoves down her sense of humiliation at kneeling to their enemies and copies Poe’s position. Looking around, she can’t see any other ships besides her’s and Poe’s. That’s a good thing, right? Hopefully the rest of the pilots are safe.

A squad of Stormtroopers comes out from behind one of the cannons, half of them marching over to Poe and the rest heading for her. Poe scowls as they yank him to his feet-- _I swear, Poe, if you snark at them and get us killed I will never forgive you,_ Jess thinks-- but fortunately he keeps his mouth shut. The Stormtroopers pat them down, confiscate their blasters, and cuff their hands behind them. The stun cuffs are heavy, and the troopers tighten them more than necessary. One of her captors pulls a rough hood over her face, and between pulling her arms and shoving her, they force her to walk through the cave and up a ramp.

 _Kriff._ So they could be going anywhere. The shuttle hums to life and takes off from the asteroid, and as it jumps to lightspeed Jess feels a pang of homesickness for Rey and the Resistance base.

After just a few minutes, the shuttle lands, and she’s jostled back down the ramp. Shit, this would be easier if she could see where they were. It’s large and echoing, she can hear that much, with troops marching and a shuttle taxiing… the hangar of a Star Destroyer, maybe?

Her captors drag her into a smaller, quieter place. “We are going to remove your flightsuit and search you,” a calm, female voice says through a Stormtrooper mask. “The rest of your clothes may stay on. If you struggle, we will stun you.”

Jess bites her lip and stays still as they peel her flightsuit off and remove her boots, leaving her in her camisole and compression shorts. The hood stays on, but they have to remove the cuffs to get the sleeves off, and they refasten them in front of her and not as painfully tight. A pitifully small kindness, but she’ll take it.

Someone pulls off the hood and shoves her through a doorway into a cell, quickly closing the door behind her.

Poe is sitting on the floor with his back to the wall, holding his wedding ring pressed to his lips. They’ve stripped him down to his undershirt and compression shorts, too. He opens his eyes, steely and defiant, but sighs in relief when he sees it’s just her.

“Jess! Are you all right?”

She offers a wry half-smile and slides down the wall to sit next to him. “What definition of ‘all right’ are you using? ‘Cuz it looks like one of my best friends and I are prisoners on a star destroyer, and that’s not really how I was hoping my day would go.”

He laughs, and more of the tension goes out of him.

“Well, excuse me for caring, asshole,” he retorts fondly.

“You’re excused. Do you know if they nabbed anyone else?”

He shakes his head. “I’m not sure, but I think it’s just us.”

“That’s good. They got you to surrender by threatening to kill me, I assume?”

“Yeah.”

“Same here. Figures.” She frowns. “Listen, if they pull that shit when they come to interrogate us, we can’t play along. Whatever they threaten me with, you don’t give them anything, got it?”

Poe grimaces. “I know you’re right, but-- _kriff_ , Jess.”

“I’m serious. You wouldn’t talk if it was you under torture, and I’d hope it’s the same for me. We both went into this war aware of the risks. I need to know that no matter what they do to me, you won’t cooperate.”

He nods slowly. “All right. I promise. And you promise the same for me?”

“I’ll even pinky promise.” She holds up her hands, still cuffed, and raises her pinky. “No giving these bastards anything, no matter what they do to us.”

He chuckles and locks his pinky with hers, and their binders clink together. “Agreed.”

The door to their cell opens, and two Stormtroopers drag Poe to his feet.

“Well, here goes,” he mutters.

“May the Force be with you, Poe.”

“You too, buddy.”

The door closes, and Jess is alone in the cell.  


	3. Chapter 3

Poe’s heart is pounding by the time the Stormtroopers drag him into the room down the hall. It’s a small room with a torture chair in the center, and they shove him into it and fasten the leg restraints before taking the binders off, so he doesn’t have a chance to try anything even if he _didn’t_ think it would be a terrible idea. The troopers leave him, and he cautiously tests the chair’s restraints. Nope, no luck.

He doesn’t have to wait long before someone enters: a slight, redheaded man who’s wearing a sour expression and pushing a cart that he leaves right outside Poe’s peripheral vision.

“So, is this gonna take long?” Poe opens. “‘Cuz I’d like to be back to the base in time for dinner.”

“You won’t be going back to your base,” the man says curtly.

“No fair. It’s pizza night. Hey, you could come, too. Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve escaped with someone from the order.”

“I know all about your escape with the traitor FN-2187, Poe Dameron. Rest assured it won’t happen again,” he says as he examines the chair’s restraints.

“Hey, I don’t believe we’ve met.”

“Armitage Hux,” the man says. “Pleasure,” he adds sarcastically as he goes to pick up something from the cart.

“Whoa, you’re General Hux? They sent the general in here? So do you do everything on base, or what? Don’t you ever take a day off?”

“This is my day off.” Hux leans over Poe with a syringe, and Poe tries not to flinch as the needle pierces the back of his hand. “And I plan to enjoy it.”

He only injects about half of the cloudy liquid before removing the needle and inserting it into Poe’s other hand.

 _If this is a truth serum, why does it need two injection sites?_ “So, this is a vaccination, right? You’re so thoughtful, looking out for my health.”

“Of course it is.” Hux refills the syringe with a vial from the cart. “Unfortunately for you Resistance types, there is no inoculation from stupidity.”

So they’re trading juvenile insults now? Well, okay. Poe can play that game, too.

“Yeah, it was pretty stupid, putting all our hopes in a huge weapon that was already tried twice and failed.” Poe winces as Hux stabs his thigh with more force than anyone should use with a needle. “No wait, I’m confused, that was you guys. Too bad about your Starkiller base, though I must say, I had a blast while I was there.”

“Well. I’m sure today will make up for it.” Hux punctuates his threat with a jab to Poe’s other leg.

The first injection is starting to itch. _What is this shit?_ From behind him, Hux forces Poe’s head forward and down and pierces the base of his neck, much too close to the spine. Poe waits until the needle is out of his neck before commenting: “Force, what a prick.” Hux ignores him and goes back to the cart.

The door opens, and a droid wheels an armchair into the room and sets it down facing Poe. The second injection is itching now, too, while the first is burning and spreading up Poe’s arm. Kriff, it’s getting worse every second. He hears liquid being poured near the cart, and a moment later Hux takes a seat in the armchair, a glass of wine in his hand. Poe’s arm spasms involuntarily as the burning pain triggers his reflexes, only he can’t get away because the pain is coming from inside of him. Hux makes a smug expression that could almost pass for a smile.

“It’s a neural irritant. We discovered it and synthesize it ourselves. What do you think?”

“I think you’re a damn fool,” Poe growls, “if you expect me to tell you anything just because you poked me with some chemistry experiment.”

The injection in Poe’s neck reaches his spine and shoots a flash of pain that leaves him biting his lip and breathing hard. He’s shaking in the restraints, and it feels like the poison is taking over his whole body.

Hux sips from his glass. “I think we misunderstand each other. I’m not here to interrogate you. I’m here to make you suffer.”

A horrible dread settles in Poe’s stomach.

“Why?”

“Why not?”

Poe closes his eyes and tries to think, if only to distract himself from the way his insides feel like they’re on fire. What could the motivation be?

Jess could have been right about splitting them up. They could be questioning her right now, showing him in pain. Better him than her, then. She’ll keep her promise and refuse to give them anything, he trusts her enough to be certain of that.

Another rush down his spine, and he groans and struggles.

Maybe it’s for revenge. Hux blames him for leading the attack on Starkiller and helping Finn escape--two embarrassing losses for Hux. So this is a punishment, or Hux is just a sadist who wants to make his enemies suffer. Seems plausible.

He’s writhing now, hard enough to bruise his wrists against the chair’s cuffs, and the leg restraints are probably holding more weight than his feet.

Hux pulls out his datapad and starts to read, looking rather bored. What a creep. At least he doesn’t appear to be getting off on the whole thing. Or maybe he is, but he doesn’t want to look too interested.

Or Hux is lying, and it’s a psychological trick. Make him think they don’t want any intel, but torture him until he’s desperate enough to offer it, instead of trying to force it out of him. Well, if that’s the plan, then they’re seriously underestimating him. Last time it took a literal mind-reader forcing his way in for the First Order to get any information that could hurt the Resistance. Poe can hold out again, right?

Honestly, this hurts almost as badly as Kylo’s mind-invasion. Poe closes his eyes and lets the pain tear the scream he’s been holding back out of his throat.

He doesn’t know how long it goes on. Hours, maybe. Eventually the stuff wears off enough for him to breathe normally, but his entire body aches from the effort of struggling, and he’s covered in sweat.

“Still not going to explain what you want from me?” Poe’s voice comes out raw and hoarse.

Hux looks up. “I did. I want to see you in pain.”

Sure, got it, the injections made that abundantly clear. But why? Poe doesn’t know if he can survive a second dose of that stuff.

“But not enough to do anything requiring actual effort, apparently. What gives?”

Hux rolls his eyes and sets his glass on the floor, and when he walks over to the restraint chair Poe realizes he might actually be somewhat drunk. How much did he drink? Okay, so maybe the part about it being his day off wasn’t just banthashit.

Hux leans over him and jabs a finger into his chest. “Don’t provoke me.” He storms over to the cart and starts rummaging through his tools.

“You call that provocation? Y’know, maybe you shouldn’t be so attached to your ego.”

With a savage expression, Hux comes back into view holding a jar of pins and a pair of pliers.

“Maybe you shouldn’t be so attached to your fingernails.”


	4. Chapter 4

Finn huffs in frustration and flops back against the sun-warmed grass. Normally the deeper he connects with the Force, the easier it is to let go of his anxiety, but today his attempts at meditation haven’t allowed him to brush off the feeling that something is wrong.  It feels like a step backwards in his training. Fear has no place in a Jedi.

He picks up a piece of dead grass and plucks at it aimlessly. Maybe he’s trying too hard. After all, making an effort to seek inner peace is the quickest way to never find it. He sits back up and crosses his legs, deciding to accept whatever his practice results in, without expectation or judgment. Closed eyes, deep breaths, heart open to the Force.

There it is again-- the feeling that something is wrong. But this time Finn, keeping a spirit of acceptance, sits with it instead of trying to brush it off.

His patient surrender allows the Force to envelop him, but instead of bringing peace, it brings an urgent clarity. _Poe. In pain._

 _No!_ Finn’s eyes fly open. Well, no kriffing _wonder_ his instincts have been on edge. He’s on his feet in an instant, rushing down the path towards the base. He’s almost made it to the hangar when he hears his husband scream, and crumples onto the path, knees and palms skidding against the dirt. The Force-impression only lasts a few seconds, but it’s as clear as though he’d heard it with his own physical ears. Finn picks himself up, wondering what could be happening to Poe for him to make that noise--no, he’s not going to think about that, he’s _not_ \--and stumbles into the hangar. Most of the ships that left earlier are back in place, but Black One’s spot is conspicuously empty.

Panicking, Finn stares at it, trying to decide what to do next. As if in response, his comm beeps with an instruction to report to the command center immediately. His instincts tell him to follow it. When he gets there, out of breath and sweaty from running, General Organa approaches him with a grim, tightly-drawn expression.

“Finn, thank you for coming. I’m so sorry to have to tell you this, but we have bad news.”

“Is this about Poe?”

She nods. “I’m sorry Finn. Your husband didn’t make it.”

“Where is he?”

Grief is evident in her tired eyes. She's far too experienced at delivering this kind of message. “A tunnel in the asteroid they were exploring collapsed with him inside it. He gave his life for a cause he believed in.”

He shakes his head. “What are you talking about? He’s not dead.”

“Finn, I know this is hard to hear--”

“He’s not dead! I can feel him in the Force. He’s alive, but he’s in a lot of pain. I don’t know what happened up there, but you have to believe me. I would have felt it if--”

Another impression from the Force hits him like a stun bolt. _Poe, struggling but trapped, everything hurts, burning--_

Finn, bent over with vicarious pain, clutches his stomach and swallows back nausea. _Oh, sweetheart, no. Oh please Force no, no!_

“Poe, he’s-- I can feel him,” he manages weakly.

The general looks at him for a moment, considering, before placing her hand on Finn’s shoulder and helps him straighten up. “Right then. We’re going to get this sorted out, Finn.” She guides him to one of the chairs at the briefing table. He collapses into it with his head in his hands.

Switching on her comm to a line exclusive to officers, she transmits a message: “Captain Kun, Captain Wexley, I need you back in the command center asap. Bring the reports from this morning’s mission.”

“I should have felt it,” Finn admits. “Before they left, I mean. I’ve known something was wrong, and I should have listened to it.”

“Finn.” The general takes a seat next to him. Her voice lowers.“Being sensitive to the Force is a great gift as well as a great burden. I can assure you that it is no guarantee that anyone will be able to protect the ones they love. And that choosing to feel guilt over letting someone leave is no way to honor their courageous choices.”

She would know, Finn realizes. And she’s right.

C-3PO sets a glass of water on the table, interrupting Finn’s thoughts. “Oh, Master Finn! Do allow me to extend my condolences. If there is anything I can do to be of service--”

The general interrupts him. “Thanks, 3PO. Give us some space?”

“Absolutely, your highness.” He shuffles away.

Finn sighs into his hands before looking up at the general with a focused intensity. “This isn’t the time for condolences. And I don’t have time to second-guess myself, either. This is the time for figuring out how we get my husband back safe.”

Captain Kun and Captain Wexley hurry in, salute the general, and take a place at the table. Her greeting doesn’t give any indication that their report could be wrong about Poe’s death, and Finn decides to follow her lead on that. Snap’s face is splotchy, and Kare’s eyes are red. Finn guesses they’ve been crying. Snap gives him a look of sympathy while Kare pulls up the mission report on her datapad.

“Okay. I know this is hard for you guys, too, and I’m sorry about that.” Finn steels himself for what they’re about to tell him. “But I need to hear it. Start from the beginning?”


	5. Chapter 5

With a groan of disappointment, Poe realizes he’s awake again after passing out for the third? fourth? time, maybe? He opens his eyes just enough to check on the pain in his hands: they’re a bloody, mangled mess, and he’s lost track of how many fingernails he’s missing underneath it, but at least all the pins are removed. Small comfort. He closes his eyes and wishes he could go back to unconsciousness.

“Oh good, you’re awake,” Hux says lightly. Poe glares at him. Hux casually checks his chrono. “And look at the time.”

 _What_ time? Poe has no idea how long he’s been trapped here. It feels like ages since he hugged Finn goodbye in the hangar and flew through the sunlight that morning.

Hux stands up from the armchair, straightens his jacket, and walks to the door.

“You four,” he calls into the hallway. “Come here.” Four stormtroopers follow him back into the room. “This is the pilot who led the assault on Starkiller.”

One of the troopers clenches a fist. Another leans back in disgust.

“Sorry, guys, no autographs at the moment,” Poe manages to mumble.

“No permanent damage,” Hux instructs, “but show him how you feel about that.”

Poe swallows hard. Instinctively his hands move to ball up-- no, bad idea, _really_ bad idea, touching his raw and exposed fingertips to his palms. He’s gonna have to find another way to defend himself.

The restraint chair ejects him, and a white-gloved fist smashes into his face. Poe loses his balance as they pummel him with too many blows at once. He kicks one of them away, but it’s not enough-- he could take on one of them in a fair fight, but when it’s four on one and they’re covered in plastisteel, he doesn’t have a chance.

An uppercut to his solar plexus leaves him doubled over, retching and gasping for air. He doesn’t even see the blow that knocks him to the floor. Pain explodes from his left shoulder like a dying star, and the lights flicker as the back of his head connects with the floor. Poe clutches his shoulder in agony. A white-covered boot stomps on his stomach. Someone is screaming, and Poe is faintly aware that it’s him. His shoulder-- it’s all wrong-- it’s lumpy, and-- _fuck_. It's out of socket. Those bastards dislocated it.

Everything is spinning and panic and fiery pain as one of the troopers pulls him to his feet. Hux is saying something he can’t quite make out. He’s vaguely aware of being shoved down a hallway, and he feels like he’s going to pass out again.

The next thing he knows, he’s on his back, alone in a cell that’s mostly dark except for a few dim red and blue lights. The air and the floor are cold against his sweaty, barely-clothed skin. Pain radiates from his still-dislocated shoulder. It doesn’t seem like they’re going to give it any medical attention. He licks his lips nervously, tastes blood. Cautiously, he reaches up to feel his face-- yeah, that punch gave him a nosebleed. Actually, he’s not entirely sure it didn’t break his nose.

With a ragged sigh, Poe closes his eyes. Maybe his brain will show some mercy and let him pass out again. Everything hurts, and he can’t will his body to move. Just breathing feels like work. He’s not sure how long he lies there like that before he hears the cell door open. _This is it, I can’t survive much more, they’re going to kill me_ , he thinks, but it’s closed again right away. With some effort, he opens his eyes, and--

“Jess?” His voice is weak and raw.

She’s got her eyes closed and all her weight on one foot, and she’s reaching out as though she’s feeling for something. But it’s Jess, and she’s alive, thank the Force.

“That you, Poe?”

“Yeah.”

“I sure kriffing hope you didn’t tell them a damn thing,” she grumbles.

“‘Course not, you know me. 'Sides, I promised. What’d they want?”

“No fucking clue.” She bends down stiffly, keeping one leg awkwardly straight, and collapses onto the floor. In the minimal light, Poe can see that her face is red and swollen around her eyes, sealing them shut. She gives a pained gasp and presses her hands to her side. _But what...?_

“Jess, what did they do to you?”

“Wait. They didn’t show you?” she says in a quiet, serious voice.

“No. They-- they tortured me, too.”

“Fuck, Poe, that’s awful.” Her brow furrows. “But why? They didn’t even ask me any questions!”

Something clicks in Poe’s mind, something from a story his parents used to tell him about Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.

“Kriffing hutt-spawned rancor shit,” he mutters, horrified. “Jess. I don’t think this is about us at all.” He swallows and takes a deep breath. “We’re just bait. They’re after Finn and Rey.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I know. :) Come scream at me in the comments.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is sad, and I know lots of us are having a rough week. If you can't/don't want to read this, please don't. Take care of yourself. <3

Rey perches on top of a cobbled-together transport and scrubs at the transceiver in her hand. Underneath all the caked-on dirt is a useful little piece, worth at least an eighth portion back in Niima Outpost. It’ll fit nicely into a commlink here. Cleaning junk parts had been her go-to method of stress relief when she first arrived on the base, but in the past few months meditation had taken its place. Not today, though. Not when connecting to the Force means feeling her beloved in pain halfway across the galaxy.

Honestly, she thinks as she sets the polished transceiver aside and picks up a multiplexer covered in slippery gunk, how foolish does Kylo Ren think they are? A routine mission ends up with the girlfriend of one of the three Jedi in the galaxy taken prisoner. The impression of pain, if Rey interpreted the distance right, is coming from a system that is, temptingly, barely behind enemy lines. And while she can’t feel whether Poe is in pain, too, Black One is missing from its spot in the hangar.

There’s only one explanation: it’s clearly a trap. And as much as Rey hates it, she’s going to fall for it anyway.

Sure, she could talk to the general or to Luke, see if they could come up with a better plan, but if she’s honest she knows they’ll try to talk her out of it, or outright forbid her to leave. Fuck that. She’ll risk her life for Jess if she chooses to. And just maybe Kylo is underestimating her again.

The only real variable is Finn. Knowing him, he’ll probably want to go with her, especially if he’s felt Poe in pain. But there’s also a chance he’ll refuse or try to stop her. It’s hard to be sure.

The multiplexer is almost clean when Finn comes into the hangar. “Hey, Finn,” she says, casually, as though nothing’s wrong.

“Rey! Where have you been?”

“Right here. Come on up.”

Finn climbs up onto the transport, and Rey sets her bucket of dirty salvage to the side. He sits with his knees pulled up to his chest and his arms hugging his shins. She doesn’t need the Force to feel him broadcasting anxiety.

“What’s the matter, Finn?”

“Poe’s in pain. And we don’t even know where he is. And _supposedly_ it doesn’t make any strategic sense to try to rescue just one or two prisoners, never mind that he’s the commander of the entire kriffing fleet. _And_ both Luke and the general don’t want me to try to find him, because they think it’s a trap.” Finn scowls and leans his head onto his knees.

Rey puts her arm around Finn, careful not to smudge the gunk on her hands onto his robe. “I’m so sorry.”

“I hate feeling helpless, Rey, I just-- wait.” He looks up at her. “Jess didn’t come back either. Luke said that you probably felt…” Finn’s voice trails off.  

“Yeah,” Rey answers quietly. “I felt her in pain.” _For hour after hour, as she cycled through pain and helpless exhaustion and frantic fear_ , Rey doesn’t add, _and I feel guilty for pulling away_.  

“Aww, Rey.” Finn, kind and strong and gentle, wraps his arms around her, and all the emotion she’s been setting aside and trying to distract herself from spills over in hot, messy tears. He holds her close, with her face buried in his shoulder, as she sobs for some time. When they pull apart, his cheeks are wet, too. She wipes her eyes, and they sit together quietly.

Finn is the one to break the silence. “So what are we gonna do, Rey?”

Rey takes her chance. She leans closer and speaks quietly near his ear: “Finn. I am not the type of person to abandon people I care about, especially those close to me. And I know that you aren’t the type of person who can sit back and go along with injustice and suffering. But I’m also not the type of person who asks permission when it’s easier for me to simply do what I must and then offer apologies later.”

A spark of hope ignites behind Finn’s eyes. He gives her a sliver of a smile. “Wow. I shouldn’t have doubted you.”

“Nope. I’ve got a shuttle mostly ready. Technically it’s out of use until someone fixes the connection between the sensors and the motivator.” Rey shrugs. “I fixed it. So if it disappears while none of the mechanics are on-duty, it won’t be missed for a while.”

“You’re amazing.” Finn beams at her.“So you don’t think it’s a trap?”

“Of course it’s a trap.” Rey picks up a clean rag and another piece out of the bucket. “I’m going anyway.”

“Okay,” Finn nods. “When do we leave?”


	7. Chapter 7

“...They’re after Finn and Rey.”

Jess gasps, shooting pain through her side. “Kriff,” she mutters, half at her ribcage and half at Poe’s realization. “But they’ll know better, won’t they? Luke and General Organa won’t let them walk into a trap.”

“Let’s hope so.” Poe pauses. “We could always try getting ourselves out first. How injured are you?”

She groans. “Pretty well kriffed. They burned my eyes with some nasty chemical, and I still can’t see. My kneecap partially dislocated, so walking or running is out. And I took a blow to the side that might have broken ribs, though it hurts too much to touch them, so I’m not sure.”

“Yikes. Scoot over and let me look.”

Trying to avoid jostling her knee, Jess carefully crawls closer to the sound of Poe’s voice and lifts her camisole.

“Hmm. You’re gonna have a nasty bruise, but there’s no visible breaks. Could be a fracture, though.”

“Fuck. What about you?”

“Well, my shoulder’s dislocated, and--”

“Wait, _was_ dislocated, or still _is_?”

“Still is. I don’t want to move it and make it worse.”

Jess raises her eyebrows. “That’s… not good. Okay, understatement of the year-- you can’t leave it like that.”

“No shit, but what am I supposed to do?”

“I can set it for you. It’s gonna hurt bad--like, you might pass out-- but it’ll hurt worse more in the long run if you leave it.”

“Honestly? Passing out would be a relief at this point.”

Jess shakes her head. “Fuck these sleemos. Okay, I’m going to hold your hand.” She reaches towards him.

“No can do, buddy. It’s pretty--uh-- I’m missing some skin and a few fingernails, so don’t touch it.”

“I’m gonna kill them.” She huffs. “All right. Your wrist and elbow then?”

With some guidance from Poe, she manages to find his forearm with her left hand and his elbow with her right.

“We’re gonna take it slow. Try to relax your muscles, and they’ll do the work for us.”

“Got it.”

Jess, with the utmost care and gentleness, holds his elbow at his side and lifts his forearm ever so slightly from where he’s pressed it against his belly. He gives a little gasp of pain and then takes a deep breath before coaxing his breathing back to normal.

“Just like that, Poe. You’re doing great.”

They work slowly, rotating his arm in miniscule increments. He moans a little, but mostly keeps his breathing steady. When they get close, Poe tenses and lets out a noise like a dying lothcat. Jess eases up on the pressure.

“Sorry! I know it hurts, but you gotta unclench your muscles.”

“Yeah. I-- kriff, it--” his attempt at communication devolves into a wordless whimper, and that scares Jess more than anything else so far. She’s heard him curse in pain at stubbed toes and mechanical mishaps, and she’s seen him sob in grief for comrades who would never come home, but Poe Dameron does not _whimper_.

“Almost done. You got this.”

He grunts, and his bone slides back into place. Both of them sigh in relief.

“That’s so much better. Thanks, Jess.”

“Sure thing.”

After a few moments, he speaks up, and Jess can practically hear his smile. “Kriff, talk about a missed opportunity. Between my moaning and you telling me it’d be easier if I relaxed, neither of us thought to make a dirty joke? I’m disappointed in us.”

Jess laughs in spite of herself, in spite of the pain in her side. “Ow, my ribs. Nerfherder. Well, I’m sure we’ll make it up to each other at some point.” She lies back on the floor next to him. “So, escape plan?”

“Uh, right. Do you know if you’ll be able to see in the morning?”

“No idea.” She pauses, and a horrible thought occurs to her. “Poe. What if it doesn’t wear off? I’ll never be able to fly again.”

“Aw, Jess, don’t say that. Let’s just take it moment by moment, okay?”

They spend the rest of the evening tossing out possible escape ideas and talking through them, until they finally decide on a plan. It’s not a very _good_ plan, but it’s better than nothing, and just having it cheers them up. The cell doesn’t have a bed, or even a cot, so they’ll have to sleep on the floor.

“Poe? Please don’t take this the wrong way, but…”

“But what?”

“It’s freezing in here, and I’m not used to sleeping alone anymore, and--”

“You wanna get cozy so we can actually get some sleep? Yes please. Here, I’m going to roll onto my side. Just don’t touch my shoulder.”

“Of course!”

With some difficulty, they both manage to lie on their right sides, Poe curling up with his knees out in front, Jess with her injured leg straight on the floor, and both of them sharing body heat. She’s a little self-conscious about smelling, but Poe’s not exactly the cleanest, either, and anyway it’s nice to be skin-to-skin with another person. Jess tucks her elbow under her head, closes her eyes, and prays to the Force that their escape tomorrow will succeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: this story is a work of fiction and is not intended as medical advice. While the shoulder dislocation reduction portrayed here is based on a real method, it carries substantial risks. Please see a qualified medical professional in the event of injury.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to [Topographical_Map_Of_Utah](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Topographical_Map_Of_Utah/pseuds/Topographical_Map_Of_Utah) and [Sourlander](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Sourlander/pseuds/Sourlander) for beta reading this chapter!

Finn’s footsteps are silent as he crosses the hangar. It’s too dark to see anything except the outlines of the ships, but the Force guides him to the shuttle Rey’s prepared. 

A dark shadowy something as big as he is appears right in front of him. Startled, Finn jumps back. His hand flies to his lightsaber hilt. 

“Where are you going so early in the morning, my padawan?” comes Luke’s voice, quiet and gentle. 

“Luke! I didn’t see you!” Finn leaves his weapon at his belt. How ridiculous, almost igniting his lightsaber on his own base. He’s tense and anxious, more than he should be, but after an afternoon of vicarious torture and worry for Poe, and a night without much sleep, he’s earned the right to be on edge. 

“The Force shows many things to those who are sensitive to it. But it can also conceal those who do not wish to be seen,” Luke says in the tone he reserves for the most infuriatingly cryptic statements. 

Of course. Force cloaking. He’d spent years hidden so well even his twin sister couldn’t find him; of course he’d be able to ambush his students’ attempt at slipping away unnoticed. 

“You’re sneaking out to rescue Poe and Jessika.” It’s not a question. 

There’s no use lying. “Yes, sir,” Finn admits, holding back a huff of frustration. He’s more upset about having to leave his husband in danger than he is about getting caught. Screw consequences. 

“Well then, let’s be on our way.” Luke nods, turns around, and starts up the ramp into the shuttle. Finn blinks in confusion for a moment before it clicks that Luke isn’t going to stop them, and he hurries up the ramp behind him.  

Rey is already in the pilot’s chair, waiting for Finn. When she sees Luke, her eyes go wide. 

“Luke! Why-what are you doing here?” 

“Joining a rescue mission, naturally. I assume you’re lifting off from the south runway instead of the north, to avoid being seen?” 

“Right.” She flips the shuttle into gear and starts taxiing to the launch site. The south runway isn’t staffed at this hour, so the planet is quiet and still. Luke and Finn buckle in for takeoff. None of them says a word as they lift off through the dark atmosphere and Rey sets their course for the coordinates of the place she sensed several hours before. Only after they shoot into hyperspace does Finn dare to break the uncomfortable silence. 

“I know you’re a skillful empath, but seriously? Are Rey and I really that obvious?” 

Luke’s eyes crinkle with laughter. “No, not at all. I didn’t feel you broadcast your emotions about choosing to leave; I knew because I know you both, and I know what I would do in your situation. What I  _ did  _ do in your situation, or one very similar.” He pauses and looks away. “Sometimes love means doing things that don’t make the most sense. Of course they have consequences. But the consequences are worth it, compared to the consequences of doing nothing.” He looks down at his metal hand. 

The pieces fall into place for Finn. “You said you were in a similar situation. It was Leia, wasn’t it? That’s how she knew it was a trap. And that’s why she didn’t want to talk about it.” 

Luke nods, solemn. “Vader lured me into fighting him by capturing Leia, Han, and Chewie. I felt their suffering and went to help them. By the time I got there, Han was already frozen in carbonite, and Vader tried to do the same to me.” 

Rey shudders. “How horrible. Was that when you lost your hand, then?” 

“It was. In hindsight, one could say that going to Bespin was unwise. And perhaps one would be right,” he admits, “but I couldn’t  _ not  _ go when my friends were in need.”

Finn nods. “That’s exactly what it feels like.” No wonder he’d ended up on their side instead of trying to stop them. 

“You both have warm hearts. And I believe that’s a good thing, but the old Jedi Order wouldn’t see it that way at all. Too many attachments, or too intimate attachments, mean passion. And passion opens you up to the Dark Side.” Luke had told them about the Jedi Order and his disagreements with them before, when Finn and Poe had first started dating and Luke had given them his blessing. 

“But you’ve taught us better than that,” Rey insists. “We won’t turn.” 

“I do not believe you will.” Luke nods. “But be on your guard. Love is a powerful passion.” He waits a moment before quietly adding, “As is grief.” 

Finn bites his lip. He doesn’t want to think about grief in this context, not when the real possibility of having to grieve his husband lurks at the edge of his awareness. “So, let’s talk about a plan for when we get there. Kylo Ren will be expecting Rey and me, but I don’t think he was planning on you being with us.” 

“Right. And he’ll sense you both, but I’m still cloaked. We can use that to our advantage.” 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to [Beautiful Lights](http://archiveofourown.org/users/beautifullights/pseuds/beautifullights) for beta reading this chapter!

“Okay, I’m starving,” Jess grumbles as Poe helps her to her feet with his good arm. “New plan: we wait and see if they’re bringing us breakfast, and don’t jump them if there’s food.” She steadies herself against the wall, tests her hurt leg-- _ouch!_ \-- and quickly decides against putting weight on it.

Poe chuckles. “Y’know, I’m just about hungry enough to agree.”

Force, it’s good to hear him laugh, even though they’re both at the laugh-to-keep-from-crying stage. Nothing about this situation is funny, but sometimes the only way to deal with whatever life throws at you is to keep your sense of humor intact. That goes double for life in the Resistance. Several weeks ago, when one of their supply shipments was destroyed before reaching the base, some of the recruits were grumbling about the food shortage. Jess had swiped a bucket, put it upside down on her head like a hat, and announced that anyone brave enough could join an expedition with intrepid explorer Pava, if they dared, to search for food in the woods. The recruits had gone from scowling to laughing, or at least giving her strange looks, and the berries and root vegetables they foraged had been enough to tide them over until another shipment could arrive. Poe had been the first to follow her, with a compass, a plucky grin, and a bucket-hat of his own. If resourcefulness and a sense of humor could get them through that mess, it better be enough to get them through this.

“Oh! Jess, how’re your eyes doing this morning? Any better?”

“No. Still can’t see. Hope it isn’t permanent.” She frowns.

“That sucks. I hope so, too. So, one-pilot ship it is, then.”

 _If we even make it to the hangar_ , Jess doesn’t add. _No, gotta stay optimistic. We can do this._

They don’t wait long before the cell door opens. _Here goes_. A trooper puts their hand on Jess’s arm, and in a split second she’s yanked their arm away and grabbed for their blaster.

Her fingers close on an empty holster, though-- _kriff_. She reaches around them to put them in an armlock. The trooper grabs her roughly, forces the barrel of their blaster against her throat, and squeezes her from behind.

 _Fuck_.

Their hold on her sends pain shooting out from the injury to her ribs, and she clenches her jaw and tries to stay still.

“Thought you could pull one over on us, Resistance scum?” the trooper sneers.

“Easy there, guys,” says Poe, “Don’t hurt her-- it was my idea, it--” There’s the sound of plastisteel hitting flesh and a grunt from Poe as the other trooper knocks the wind out of him.

“Shut up.” The trooper holding Jess shoves her against the wall and holds her there while he yanks her arms behind her back and fastens her wrists into stun cuffs. “And don’t even think about trying anything else.”

An armored hand grips her elbow, and the trooper drags her away. She has to limp to keep weight off her knee.

“Jess!” Poe is winded and straining to speak. “It’s gonna be okay-- we can--”

“I said shut _up!”_ There’s a sickening crack (of bone breaking? Plastisteel shattering? Head hitting the wall? Jess can’t tell) and a soft thud.

“Poe?” she calls over her shoulder. Silence. “Poe!”

A blow to her face throws her off balance.

“Quiet. Keep moving.” The trooper pulls her down the hallway, more insistently than before.

The shock of being hit in the face wears off, and a sharp throbbing takes its place. By the time she’s strapped down to a torture chair and left alone, a trickle of blood has made its way from her lip down her chin.

Her thoughts are racing: _what did they do to Poe? Is he okay? Is he dead? Am I alone here? Are they gonna kill me, too? What if Rey doesn’t come? Kriff, even worse, what if she_ does _? Will I ever get to see again?_

She waits, because that’s all she really can do, holds back tears from her irritated eyes, and makes a promise to herself:

_I am a Resistance pilot. I will never give in to despair. I will not go down without a fight._

She repeats these words in her mind like a mantra, until the frantic swirl of worry calms and her inner resolve strengthens.

The cell door opens and closes again. The footsteps of the person who entered aren’t those of a stormtrooper.

“Let’s see, what shall we start with?” a man asks himself in a soft voice and a Core accent similar to Rey’s.

“Is Commander Dameron alive?” Jess manages somehow to keep her voice steady.

The man makes an amused noise and a sound that Jess recognizes as a lighter flicking on. “You care about your commanding officer, do you?”

 _Not really a secret at this point, sleemo._ “Yes. I do.”

He sighs a long exhale, and Jess catches a whiff of cigarra smoke. “Well then. You should have thought of that before you two tried to escape.”

Something about his smug tone grates on Jess. There’s a pause, and it doesn’t seem like he’s going to answer. Kriff, if Poe really is dead, Jess’ll never forgive herself. He can’t be. Not her friend. Not the comrade whose life she’s saved sixteen times. Not Finn’s husband-- and after she promised Finn she’d do her best to bring him home safe.

The lighter flicks on again. Several seconds later, something hot and metallic presses against her upper arm, and she flinches away from it. The restraints don’t leave much room to back away. She grits her teeth, clenches her fists, and tries not to give the man a reaction.

_I am a Resistance pilot. I will never give in to despair. I will not go down without a fight._


	10. Chapter 10

The pain in Poe’s face and shoulder, and a new ache at the back of his head, reach his consciousness first. He’s lying on his back, strapped to a low table, with a bright light in his face. Last thing he remembers, he was trying to encourage Jess when one of the troopers slammed him back against the wall. So, a concussion, then. Kriff, he’ll be lucky if he makes it out of this in one piece. He hopes Jess is okay, hopes they haven’t punished her for his recklessness.

[Subject is conscious] says a med droid at his side. [Minimal brain damage. Vitals returned to normal. You may proceed.]

“Very good,” says a vaguely familiar voice, and a shiny helmet appears at the edge of his vision. It’s that captain who was on Jakku a couple years back-- Finn’s old captain. Prisma? Phasera?

Phasma. Right. Poe feels a surge of protective rage. She’s one of the ones who shows up from time to time in those late-night talks when Finn opens up about his past and the abuse he suffered from the First Order. Poe’s held Finn and let him sob onto his shoulder after at least one nightmare about her Reconditioning division.

“That was a ridiculous stunt you tried in your cell this morning,” she chides him. “You aren’t nearly afraid enough.”

Poe gives a noncommittal shrug with his good shoulder. “You aren’t very frightening.”

“Nonsense,” Phasma replies. “Fear is biochemistry.” If she notices him rolling his eyes at her, she doesn’t respond. “Monitor the subject’s blood oxygen levels. I want him awake for this.”

That… doesn’t sound promising. With a mechanical whir, the table he’s strapped to slowly tilts so that his feet are higher than his head and the ankle cuffs bite into his skin. Poe swallows hard against gravity and shoots her an unimpressed look.

She holds a rag over his mouth and nose with an uncomfortable pressure and pours water on it. Water floods his nose and sinuses. He tries to hold his breath. The water fills his throat, triggering his cough reflex, and he’s hit with an overwhelming, primal panic.

_Drowning._

_Dying!_

He fights for his life against the restraints, but chrome-plated fingers hold his head in a vice grip, and the straps and chains don’t budge.

_Need air, need air!_

His lungs burn, and the edges of his vision go dark. Just when he thinks she might have actually killed him, the med droid beeps, and the sopping wet cloth is taken away. He gasps, choking and sputtering and coughing water out of his nose and mouth.

He’s still gulping down air and expelling water when Phasma grips his head again. He sucks in a quick breath before the cloth suffocates him and more water floods his airways. Panic vetoes his reason-- he can’t suppress the impulse to struggle, and even if some faraway piece of his mind suspects he’s not actually dying, his body’s convinced he is.

 _Poe!_ Finn is in his mind, calling to him. _Hang in there, sweetheart. I’m on my way. I feel your fear, but--_

 _NO!_ Poe wants to scream at him. _Stay away! It’s a trap!_

He goes lightheaded, and the cloth is removed, letting in the air he’s desperate for.

“No,” he pleads between gasps. _Finn, if you can hear me, I never wanted you to risk your life for me._ “No, please, no.” A coughing fit overtakes him, and water gurgles out between heaves and sobs. _Please, darling, stay away._

The table whirs back into a level position, and the restraints click open. Shaking, Poe wipes water off his face and curls onto his side, cradling his left arm. Now that the panic is fading, he can feel a sharp, stabbing pain in the shoulder he re-injured by thrashing around. His throat feels coarse and raw. His breath comes in ragged sobs and gasps and stubbornly refuses to find its normal rhythm.

“Like I said. Simple biochemistry.” Phasma’s voice is empty of emotion.

A stun baton sizzles on behind him. Poe closes his eyes and waits for it to make contact with his wet skin.

The cell door opens. “Captain, he’s ready for them,” someone says.

The stun baton turns off. “Excellent. I’ll have the prisoner right out.”

Phasma puts Poe in binders and has the sense to help him to his feet and steer him out the door by putting her arm around his back rather than dragging him by the elbow. Walking turns out to be a lot for Poe to handle in his condition, and he stumbles several times on the way into the hangar. They cross the wide, noisy bay to Kylo Ren’s personal shuttle, and she hands him off to an officer who leads him on board.

Poe has some bad memories associated with this ship, and it doesn’t look like this experience will be any better. When the officer shoves him to the floor, Poe braces himself to be kicked or beaten, but the officer vanishes down the ramp. A moment later, he returns and throws Jess onto the floor next to Poe. She’s got a split lip and painful-looking burns up and down her arms, but other than that she doesn’t look much worse than she did that morning. Then again, nothing that happened to him since then left any visible marks.

“ _Psst_. Jess,” he whispers as soon as the officer is out of earshot.

She perks up. “Poe? You’re okay?”

He scoots closer to her. No, he’s not okay, can’t remember ever being so miserable, but he can hold himself together for Jess. “Well, it looks like one of my best friends and I are prisoners on Kylo Ren’s Upsilon, and that’s not really how I was hoping my day would go.”

“Poe! You nerfherder, I thought you might be dead!”

“Nah, just a concussion.”

“Thank the Force.”

Poe’s considering whether or not to tell her about Finn’s Force-message when the officer strides towards them, leans over him, and ties a strip of dark cloth in his mouth.

He does the same to Jess, and she winces as it reopens the cut on her lip. Once he’s gone, Poe tests the gag with his tongue. Too tight to spit out, but loose enough to pull out. He could pull it out now, if he thought they wouldn’t notice-- using a cleave gag on someone whose hands are cuffed in front of them is an amateur move, he thinks wryly. Why, Finn had figured that out within the first month they were dating. But then, Finn was leagues smarter than these First Order goons, and playing a role with a consenting partner is light years away from controlling hostages.

The shuttle hums on, heavy footsteps echo up the ramp, and Poe finds himself face-to-mask with Kylo Ren. Kylo moves like a storm, looming and threatening destruction, his robes swirling around him like arms of a hurricane. He gives Poe and Jess a once-over that, even from behind the mask, makes Poe feel exposed. Poe stares back up at him, defiant. Kylo continues on his way to the front of the craft, and soon the shuttle soars out of the hangar into space.


	11. Chapter 11

Rey leads Finn on a charge through the hallways, using the Force to guide them to where Jess is in pain. They’ve landed on a abandoned tibanna gas mining colony on an uninhabited moon, and the facility is dark and silent. The only light comes from the twin green blades of her lightsaber and the golden blade of Finn’s. It’s hard to say why Kylo is holding Jess, and presumably Poe, here, at a location that wasn’t designed for military use, instead of leading Rey and Finn to a Star Destroyer or other First Order base.

“How come we haven’t been challenged yet?” Finn asks. He’s right. They haven’t seen a single life form-- not a Stormtrooper, a noncombatant resident, or heck, even a droid-- since landing.

“I don’t know. This whole thing is fishy.” Even expecting a trap, she feels eerie about the whole mess.

A closed door blocks their way. She reaches for the control panel next to it, then hesitates. Jess is near, but so is a familiar dark presence. She exchanges an anxious look with Finn that confirms he can feel Kylo Ren nearby, too. They both take a deep breath and center themselves in the Force before entering.

They find themselves on a small island of a platform, inside a vast chamber that’s either too dark or too deep to see the floor. Two narrow bridges jut out from their platform: on the left is a platform like theirs, and on the right is a large dais with vapor rising from its center. And across from them, on the only well-lit platform in the room, sits Kylo Ren, with Jess and Poe on the floor at his feet.

Rey’s stomach turns at the sight of them. Both the pilots are cuffed and gagged, and both in blood-stained undershirts. From the red swelling around Jess’s eyes, the way she’s holding her leg at an awkward angle, and the bruises covering Poe’s shoulder and most of his face, it’s clear they’ve been not just hurt, but brutalized. Rey is stunned speechless in a mix of pity, fury, and disgust.

“I knew you’d come.” Kylo says, matter-of-fact. He doesn’t ignite his lightsaber, even though Rey and Finn still have theirs out.

Finn recovers from speechlessness first. “Interplanetary law forbids torturing prisoners of war and demands that the guilty parties forfeit custody of mistreated prisoners. You have no right to those two.”

“Nice try. Too bad the Republic is dead, and we all know you’re just here for your fucktoys.”

“How _dare_ you bring my husband into this.” Finn’s voice is level, but restrained anger is radiating off of him in waves.

“Yeah, next time you want to fight us, have the guts to challenge us yourself,” Rey adds.

“You’re not here for me to fight you.” Kylo’s mask is impassive. There’s a pause as they wait for him to continue, but he seems content to leave his words in the air.

“Well then, what do you want, Kylo?” she asks.

“I am to bring one or both of you to Supreme Leader Snoke. I do not know what he wants for you; perhaps he means to continue your training. He’s taught me the ways of the Force, so much more than Skywalker had to offer. I’ll even let you choose which you prefer: you can either turn to the Dark Side--”

“Not an option,” interrupts Rey.

“You say that, but I can feel your anger, your fear. Your suffering. You’re closer than you think.”

Finn raises his lightsaber. “We’ve seen the Dark Side, and we’re never joining you.”

“The other option is to be frozen in carbonite, while I transport you to Snoke.” Kylo gestures to the platform with the vapor, and Rey realizes that it’s a carbon-freezing chamber. “At least one of you is coming with me, and your pilots will be free to go back to their base. Or to come with you, if you choose to join the Dark Side. That’s the deal: one of you for both of them. I guess you could say I’m feeling generous.”

“No!” comes a hoarse shout, and it takes Rey a second to notice that Poe has ripped his gag off. “Don’t do it! It’s not worth it-- you have to get out of--”

Kylo covers Poe’s mouth with one leather-gloved hand and turns on his lightsaber with the other, holding it menacingly close to Poe’s throat. “No one asked you.”

Poe squeezes his eyes shut as Kylo runs his thumb over the bruises on Poe’s face. Rey has never felt Finn more angry, or more afraid. If she’s being honest, she has to admit she feels the same.

“The flip side of that,” Kylo continues, “is that if you leave, both of them will die. A slow, painful, horrible death.”

“And why should we trust you to uphold your end of any bargain?” Rey demands.

“Don’t.”

After putting his lightsaber away, Kylo stretches out his arm to her and makes a grasping motion. Rey feels him at the edge of her mind, not invading it, but there all the same. She extinguishes her lightsaber and reaches toward him, letting her mind meet his halfway.

Kylo’s mind is a dark, unhappy place, and Rey’s memories of their last time doing this are unpleasant to say the least. He holds still and lets her comb through his intentions and memories. He’s afraid of Snoke. ( _Interesting,_ she thinks.) Snoke did, in fact, command him to bring Rey or Finn, but gave no instructions regarding why or how. Kylo doesn’t hold any particular grudge against Poe, and doesn’t care about Poe or Jess beyond their connection to the Jedi and to the Resistance he hates more broadly.

That’s good. Rey pushes harder, though. Would he actually kill the pilots, even if Rey or Finn gave themselves up? He’d thought about it, thought perhaps seeing their loved ones die would turn them to the dark side, but he’d come to the obvious conclusion that killing hostages makes people try to kill you, not do as you tell them. Without them there, the Jedi who’s left has no reason not to attack Kylo. He believes-- correctly, Rey thinks-- that making the trade without any subterfuge is his best chance for bringing a Jedi to-- well, he won’t let her see where, but to wherever Snoke is. What if Rey and Finn refuse, and simply leave? With a shudder, Rey realizes he’s serious about that, too.

Rey nods and pulls back. “We will discuss our response.” She turns to Finn, who warily returns his lightsaber to his belt. “Well, he does seem to be telling the truth.”

Finn frowns. “Even still, I don’t trust him.”

“Me neither, but I don’t see a way around it.”

Finn uses his hood to block Kylo from reading his lips. “Where’s Luke?”

“Still cloaked, and if he’s nearby he’s doing the right thing by staying out of sight while Kylo’s that close to them.”

“True.” Finn anxiously looks back at Poe, then over at the carbon-freezing chamber. “I guess that leaves us only one option.”

“Yeah.” Rey hesitates before making up her mind. She's come this far knowing what it might cost her, and there's no turning back now. If this is what it takes to save Jess's life, then this is what she'll do. “But not you.”

Finn looks at her in horror. “Rey--”

“Look at them, they’re beaten half to death, and I don’t have healing powers. You do. It’s gotta be me.”

Finn's objection fades as he realizes she's right. He throws his arms around her, and she hugs him back.

“I’m not gonna let this be goodbye,” he says. “I’ll come back for you, and if I can’t stop him from leaving with you, I’ll search the whole galaxy until I find you.”

Rey feels a pang of dread, her old fear of being abandoned. But she’s not a little girl anymore, and Finn has proven time and time again that he’ll be there if she needs him. She breaks the hug to give him a nervous smile. “You know I can take care of myself. Just, take care of Jess, will you?”

Finn solemnly looks her in the eye. “I will.”

Rey straightens her shoulders and takes a deep breath. “All right, Kylo. We’ll play along. Now let them go.”

She tries not to look down as she steps out onto the catwalk.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to [Zoe_Dameron](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Zoe_Dameron/pseuds/Zoe_Dameron) for beta reading this chapter!

Finn’s heart sinks as Rey steps onto the bridge towards the carbon-freezing chamber at their right. He hates this, feeling like he’s giving her up.  As he watches Rey, the way she keeps her head up, the way she steps with purpose and bravery, Leia’s words about honoring courageous choices come to mind.

“Interesting choice, Eight-seven,” Kylo Ren says, and Finn bristles at the reference to his old Stormtrooper designation. “But I guess we already knew loyalty wasn’t your strong suit. _Traitor_.”

“If you care so much about keeping your word, you’ll take your hands off my husband.”

Kylo’s sigh is raspy through the mask. “All right, playtime’s over. Off you go.” He lets go of Poe and waves his hand, and their stun cuffs clatter against the platform. With a flourish of his cape, he stands and starts down the bridge towards the carbon-freezing chamber.

Cautious, Finn ventures onto the bridge at his left. Poe rubs at the bruises on his wrists and stands, slowly and stiffly, while Jess unties her gag and dabs at the blood on her lip. Poe helps her to her feet, then puts his arm around her shoulders and guides her towards the bridge away from Kylo. She leans onto him for support, limping on an injured leg, and he says something softly into her ear as he helps her walk. It’s something encouraging, Finn’s sure. That’s just like his husband, helping others even when he needs help himself. Jess says something back, and when Poe replies, she nods, scrunches up her face, and looks like she’s trying not to cry.

The five of them move along the bridges to the corner platforms slowly and tensely, but they make it: Rey and Kylo onto the dais with the carbon-freezing chamber, and Finn, Poe, and Jess across from them. Poe and Jess collapse as soon as they make it, and Finn catches them in his arms, steadying them with the Force and setting them down gently.

“Thanks, darling,” Poe says hoarsely as Finn wraps his arms around him and just holds him close, preparing to heal him using the Force. “Jess first,” he protests. “She’s hurt worse, and we’re not gonna make it very far if she can’t walk.”

Jess sniffles. “I am _not_ hurt worse, you ridiculous martyr.”

Finn knows Poe can get stubborn when he’s determined to put someone else first, and as much as he wants to comfort and heal him, he knows there’ll be time for that later. Plus, he promised Rey he’d take care of Jess. “All right. It’s your knee?”

Jess nods, and Finn places his hands over the damaged joint. The Force doesn’t come as easily to him as he’s used to, not when his heart is hurting like this, but he pours energy over the injury and lets the Light begin to knit it back together.

The carbon-freezing chamber hisses, and Finn looks up. Rey holds her head high and walks to the center of the apparatus.

Kylo’s dark gloves hover over the control panel. “Whenever you’re ready.”

Jess calls to Rey: “Thanks, babe. See you when you get back.” Her voice shakes, but she sounds hopeful. How clever of her, Finn realizes-- she’s refusing to give Kylo the desperate, dramatic goodbye he almost certainly wants. Poe sits up and raises his less-injured arm into a Resistance salute.  

Finn returns to concentrating on healing Jess’s knee. Watching Rey be frozen isn’t going to help a thing, and the sooner Jess can walk, the easier it’ll be to get out of here. On the far platform, the machine lowers Rey into the chamber and shoots out a plume of vapor. A mechanical arm reaches into the chamber just as Finn’s finishing the healing process and pulls out a metallic block. Finn’s throat tightens at the sight of Rey’s rigid features.

Kylo inspects the block. “Well, the Supreme Leader will be pleased to know his prize survived the carbon-freezing process.” He grasps at the air, levitating the block encasing Rey. “Until next time.” He turns with a dramatic swish of his cape, opens the door behind him, and leaves with the carbonite slab.

Finn stands up. “Let’s get out of here.”

“We can’t let him leave with Rey,” Poe says as he scrambles to his feet.

“We might not have to.” Finn helps Jess up, supporting her as she cautiously tests her leg. “Can you fly a shuttle?”

Poe shoots him a look. “Haven’t we been over this? I can fly any--”

“I know you know how, sweetheart. I’m asking if you can operate the controls with your hands scraped up like that and your shoulder injured, and if you can stay conscious long enough to land the thing.”

Poe looks genuinely shocked, like it hadn’t even occurred to him that he might not be able to fly. “Yeah. Yeah, I think so.”

“Good.” Finn opens the door and takes Jess’s hand as he leads the way back out. “Hopefully Luke can find Kylo and stop him from leaving. I’ll show you where our shuttle is and then go back to find Rey.” He’s walking briskly, but holding back enough for Poe and Jess to keep up. “The trip back to base is a little over four hours. Do you want me to heal anything before you go?”

“No, you need to hurry back for Rey,” says Jess. “We can’t let Kylo take her to Snoke.”

“Yeah, I agree. Jess and I can hold on long enough to get to the medbay and wait for you there,” Poe adds.

When they reach the shuttle, Finn gives Poe a hug and kisses his forehead. “I wish I could heal you now.”

“Wish you could too, but you’ve got some ass to kick first. Go show Kylo what he gets for messing with us, ‘kay?”

Finn laughs. “Don’t tell Luke you encouraged me to seek revenge.” He hugs Jess, too.

“Thank you so much, Finn.” she says. “You guys are heroes, y’know that?”

“We’re just people who couldn’t help caring. All right, I’ll see you back at the base.”

“See you there, darling,” Poe says as he guides Jess up the ramp.

Finn reignites the golden beam of his lightsaber and takes off running.


	13. Chapter 13

A sudden downpour of rain pounds against the roof of the shuttle and echoes in Jess’s ears as she lets Poe help her with her seatbelt. 

“Great, perfect flying weather,” she mutters, and the buckle snaps into place. “Good luck, pal.” 

“Hey, I got this. Relax.” His seatbelt clicks, and the engine rumbles on with a clatter that’s less than reassuring. Still, if Rey flew this thing over here, Jess can trust it to take her home safely. Rey certainly has a way with the old clunkers the Resistance scrounges up. If anyone could fix up a junky shuttle like this, it’s her. And Jess wants to believe that if anyone could survive being Snoke and Kylo’s prisoner, it’s Rey, too. Kriff, she understands why Rey did it, but it stings her to have been a helpless hostage in the exchange, stings that there’s still nothing she can do to help Rey. Just go back to the base and try to recover, that’s the only option. 

Jess rubs the back of her hand against her eyelids and blinks. As if that could magically make her see. Maybe Poe’s kept his uncanny ability to stay perfectly calm in the most dangerous and uncertain predicaments, but Jess hates feeling like she has no control over a situation. There’s almost always something worth trying, something that’s not entirely out of her hands, but those rare moments when there isn’t leave her antsy and short-tempered, and right now is no exception. She huffs and realizes she’s jiggling her leg against the seat. 

The shuttle quivers along the pitch and roll as it lifts from the landing pad into the planet’s atmosphere. 

“Stabilizers, Poe!” 

“I swear, if you start backseat-piloting,” he grumbles, but doesn’t finish his thought. It’s a truism, and something of an inside joke, that the better the pilot, the worse the passenger. But if Poe doesn’t get those stabilizers in line--

With a startling jerk, the craft rolls to the starboard side. The lurch slams Jess against her seatbelt with no regard for her injured ribs. Poe hisses in pain and gasps as the shuttle spins out of control. 

Jess is  _ this close _ to grabbing the control stick herself-- no wait, this model has a yoke, doesn’t it?  _ Force. _ His shoulder-- 

“You kriffing moofmilker!” She scrambles across the cockpit, despite the frantic motion of the craft, and clutches at the pilot’s chair for balance while firmly gripping the left side of the yoke and steadying the shuttle. “You can’t steer the ship one-handed!” 

She hears Poe grunt, hears the flick of a switch, and feels the stabilizers engage. 

“Pull back ten degrees,” is all Poe says, and Jess adjusts the yoke. Together they position the shuttle to leave the atmosphere. He’s still holding one side of the yoke with his right hand, but the other side is all Jess, and shuttles definitely weren’t made to be flown this way, but somehow they manage to make it work. A few moments later, they’re past the clouds and out of the rain. Jess breathes a sigh of relief. A few moments after that, they’re out of the atmosphere entirely, and when they’ve finally gotten the Resistance base coordinates locked in and jumped to hyperspace, Jess lets herself flop to the floor. 

She glares in his general direction. “Poe Dameron. What the fuck were you thinking? You could have gotten us killed!” 

He gives a long sigh, and his voice is quiet and sad. “I was thinking I could push through the pain. Like I always do. I thought because you were counting on me, and Finn and Rey were counting on me, that I could pull it off. I didn’t think I’d actually be unable to fly. I’m really sorry, Jess.” 

Aw, shit. She can never stay mad at him. “I forgive you. And I’m sorry for shouting at you.” 

“I deserved it.” 

“True.” She gives him a sad smile. “Hey, this whole ‘feeling frustrated because you can’t do stuff you feel like you should be able to do’ thing? I get it. Really. I’ve felt that way the whole time. We’re in this together, and it’s okay to need help.” 

“Okay, you’re right.” He stands up and puts his good arm around her. “Hey, those burns look nasty, and I’m still starving. Wanna see if they stashed any bacta and ration bars on this rustbucket?” 

“I’d love to see,” she says dryly. He makes it a full four seconds before bursting out laughing. 

The shuttle’s locker does have a box of ration bars, and Poe hands the box to Jess for her to slip a finger under the top flap and open. They make quick work of polishing it off, and with a little more rummaging find a fully-stocked first aid kit. 

“Well, the good news is that there’s bacta here,” Poe says. “And normally I’d say that a quart of it is plenty, but under the circumstances, well.” 

“Yeah, that’s not going to go very far. Hmm. Your shoulder’s probably the most urgent injury, but I don’t think a quart’ll have much effect on it before we get back.” 

Eventually they have Jess lie on a pull-down bed and have Poe scoot up a chair. The bacta is slick and cold against her skin, and he spreads it on her split lip and her burns comfortingly, smearing it around the back of his fingertips as he goes. She insists he use the rest on his face, which he grudgingly does. They knot together several bandages to jury-rig a sling for Poe’s arm.

“Why don’t you try to get some sleep before we land?” she asks. 

“Nah. If I fall asleep now, I’ll be groggy and won’t want to wake up. How about you rest, and I’ll wake you up when we get close to the base?” 

“All right. But you’d better actually wake me up and not try to land the kriffing shuttle yourself, punk.” 

“No worries, lesson learned.” The self-reproach is thick in his voice. 

Jess tugs a blanket over herself, and Poe dims the lights in the cabin before returning to the cockpit. She’s exhausted and sleep-deprived after their night on the floor, but maybe being alone with her worry was a bad idea. 

Rey. In carbonite. Kylo Ren’s prisoner. And nothing Jess can do about it. 

It’s a mercy Jess didn’t see Rey frozen, but her imagination is eager to fill in the details: metallic face, maybe scrunched in anger or wide-eyed with fear, stiff fingers grasping at nothing, body cemented for that monster to run his dirty hands over. She feels sick, and the tears that threatened to spill out in front of Kylo are welling up again. She wraps the blanket tighter around her and lets herself cry. 

 


	14. Chapter 14

Finn pulls his hood forward to keep the rain out of his face, and as the door opens, the blurry, golden reflection of his lightsaber slides away to reveal the pitch-black night sky. Thank the Force, he’s made it to the right landing pad: he’d been able to feel Kylo Ren’s presence, but Rey was better at sensing specific locations.

At the end of the platform is Kylo’s menacing shuttle; in front of it, Luke and Kylo have locked blades, Kylo’s jagged red lightsaber sparking and fizzling against Luke’s elegant green saber; and in front of that is the carbonite block holding Rey and reflecting a ghastly red and green-tinged impression of her.

“Rey!” Finn puts away his saber and runs to her. Two dials on the side of the block turn easily to undo the carbon-freezing. For a second, it looks like nothing is happening. Luke and Kylo break away from each other, only to clash again in a violent succession of strikes. From behind the shuttle ramp, an officer and a stormtrooper are aiming their blasters, trying to get a clear shot at Luke without hitting Kylo. The trooper fires, and with a swing of Luke’s saber the blaster bolt ricochets to its source. Finn winces as the trooper falls.

The carbonite over Rey’s face and hands glows red-orange and melts away. Her body is still and pale, and when Finn presses a rain-soaked hand to her face, it’s cold under his touch.

“Rey?” Force, it doesn’t look like she’s breathing. Finn chokes up, and his voice cracks: “Rey, can you hear me? Come on, please. Please, Rey.”

He reaches out in the Force, trying to see if there’s anything he can heal, to see if there’s anything left of her Force signature. Her life essence is weak, but it’s still there, flickering. She shudders, or shivers perhaps, and groans. He hugs her, so relieved he could almost cry.

“Finn?” She moves to sit up.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’ve got you.” He puts his arm around her shoulders and helps her sit. Rainwater pools in the impression she left in the back of the carbonite.

She pulls her cloak more tightly around her. Her words come out in gasping fragments: “Finn-- I’ve-- hibernation sickness-- can’t see-- dizzy--”

“It’s okay,” he says, holding her close. “You’re gonna be all right.”

He strokes her back as she continues to shiver. “Can I carry you out of the rain?”

She nods and leans into him, and he wraps one arm around her shoulders and the other under her knees.

They’ve almost made it to the shelter of the arched doorframe. Finn feels Luke’s pain just before he hears him yell and sees his elbow smoking with a blaster wound. Kylo takes his chance, battering Luke with explosive blows that Luke just barely deflects. Luke is losing ground, and fast. The officer takes aim again.

Finn sets Rey down under the cover of the doorway and kisses her forehead before running to distract Kylo with an attack of his own. Luke deflects another blaster bolt from the officer, hitting the ramp next to him.

Kylo whirls around to face Finn and assumes a fighting stance. For an instant he’s perfectly still except for the wind whipping his cloak and cowl and the rain running down his mask. But then Finn’s close enough to strike, and the collision of their sabers shoots red and gold sparks into the wet night.

The last time Finn fought Kylo was on Starkiller, and that was before any of his training, before he even knew he was sensitive to the Force. This time, he fights with skill and control, advancing with graceful yet powerful sweeps of his saber. Kylo’s fighting style is the same, though: a barrage of heavy blows fueled by anger and aggression.

“You really are a Jedi.” Kylo’s voice is barbed with contempt. “Only a Jedi would be so hypocritical as to feign honor despite being a turncoat. Some guardian of peace you are, Eight-seven.”

Finn deflects a blow and angles his saber so as to leverage Kylo’s crossbeam against him, twisting it so that Kylo almost drops his weapon. “If I’m a stormtrooper, then you’re the son of Leia Organa and Han Solo.”

Kylo pulls his saber loose and slashes wildly. “Don’t you dare say those names to me!” he snarls.

 _Good._ Finn notices Kylo’s sloppiness. Kylo’s angry, but he can’t channel his anger into controlled strength. The Light is strong in Finn as he blocks a swing and pushes Kylo’s blade back towards him, making their lightsabers hiss and crackle. “Neither of us could control where we came from. It’s our choices that made us who we are.”

“You can’t just decide who you want to be,” Kylo sneers. They break apart and circle each other, feeling out the other’s defenses. “You don’t understand, this is my heritage. This is my _destiny_.”

“You can’t _not_ decide who you want to be.” Finn lunges, but Kylo fends him off. “I chose compassion. You could have, too, but you choose death every time.”

A metal whir startles them both. The shuttle retracts its ramp as the officer tries to hide from Luke, who sheaths his lightsaber and leaps, sliding into the shuttle just before the ramp closes.

“Sure. And right now I choose yours.” Kylo reaches one dark-gloved hand towards Finn, and Finn feels himself freeze as if turned to stone. It only takes a moment for Finn to break the Force-bond and leap back, but it’s enough time for Kylo to complete his swing. The tip of Kylo’s lightsaber slashes across Finn’s thigh, searing through cloth and skin and muscle. Finn yells in pain and stumbles backward. He deflects another slash and tries to regain his footing, failing and crumpling to the wet duracrete. Quickly he sends healing energy to the wound, but the cut burned almost to the bone, and he can’t concentrate on both healing himself and fighting Kylo at once.

Kylo laughs and takes a couple of casual steps towards him. “Hero. Right. So long, Eight-seven.”

Finn pushes against the slick ground, inching away from Kylo’s advance, struggling to keep his focus on defending himself instead of on the searing pain in his leg. “My _name_. Is _Finn_.”

Kylo switches to a two-handed grip and raises his lightsaber over his head. Finn braces himself. But the strike doesn’t come. Kylo is perfectly still for several seconds before he whirls around with an angry, wordless shout.

Rey is several paces behind them, on her knees and one hand, while the other hand is outstretched towards Kylo. She’s shaking, and her eyes are closed, but hibernation sickness hasn’t touched her connection to the Force.

“How dare you use that against me?” Kylo screams. “That’s _my_ skill! You learned that from me!” He growls and stalks toward her.

“Rey!” Finn shouts. He tries to hold Kylo back, but Kylo brushes him aside.

The twin green blades of Rey’s saber hum to life, piercing the darkness around her, and she rises to her feet. Kylo attacks her with a vengeance, and while she can sense where he’s aiming his blows, she’s still weakened by the carbonite. She looks about to fall over any second, and her movements lack the quick strikes Finn’s used to seeing from her. Somehow she manages to stay standing and avoid being sliced in half.

Just in time, Luke’s blue saber appears in the entrance to the shuttle, and he charges out and throws himself between Rey and Kylo, knocking Kylo’s attacks aside.

Finn sighs in relief and centers himself, knitting the flesh in his thigh back together. As soon as he’s fixed it enough to stand, he scrambles to his feet and rushes towards the fight.

Luke has pushed Kylo back, but Kylo is moving in circles. Luke and Finn advance together and bring him to the edge of the platform. He fights back wildly, his fear of falling strengthening his connection with the dark side.

A blow by Luke slices through the faceplate of Kylo’s mask, shattering it. Kylo pulls off the helmet and throws it aside, his eyes glowing with fear and fury. His heel misses the platform’s edge, and he loses his balance and vanishes over the side.

Finn can feel him in the Force, not falling, but holding onto the scaffolding underneath them. A strong impulse hits him, a furious desire to go down there and finish Kylo off, to make him suffer, to pay him back for everything Kylo’s done to him and to Poe and to Rey. Kylo’s earned it. But that’s not the kind of person Finn wants to be. He’s chosen to be a Jedi, to give up revenge in exchange for justice.

 _Wait_ , says Rey’s mind to his. He slides into a fighting stance and waits.

With a loud shout, Kylo swings himself over the edge and up into the air, intending to pounce on Finn and run him through. But Finn is ready, and slices Kylo’s legs from his body before he hits the ground. Kylo screams and looks at his legs in horror. He slashes the air, aiming for Finn’s torso, but Finn cuts through his arm. Kylo’s severed hand falls to the ground, his lightsaber hilt clattering against the pavement. Terrified, Kylo looks down off the platform, looks back up at Finn, and pushes himself over the edge. Finn watches as the clouds below them seem to swallow him up.

“He’s still alive,” Rey says. “But he’s not coming back.”

“Let’s get out of here,” Finn says, helping Rey to her feet.

Luke picks up Kylo’s saber hilt and follows them onto the upsilon shuttle. “Well done, my padawans. I’m proud of you.”


	15. Chapter 15

Poe pulls his knees up to his chest and wraps a blanket around himself. Hyperspace blurs past the nose of the shuttle, silent and cold.

He’s a spiralling storm of anxious thoughts and feelings: fear for Finn, hatred for Kylo, concern for Jess, worry for Rey, anger for this whole Force-damned mess of a situation.

Anger at himself, for being helpless. Jess has already forgiven him for trying to fly injured, but it’ll take him a little longer to forgive himself.

He’s ready to be back to the base, to get back to being Commander Dameron again and not a useless pawn, to not be cold and in pain. If only Finn were here with him, or safely back at the base waiting for Poe to run into his arms--

The control panel interrupts Poe’s thoughts, alerting him to their swift approach to the planet. He stands up, stretching his stiff legs, and goes to wake up Jess. She’s asleep, but her fists are clenched, and there are tear tracks on her face. She must have cried herself to sleep. _Poor Jess._ For a moment, he considers just letting her sleep, but he needs her to help land the shuttle.

“Jess, wake up.” He gently taps her shoulder.

She sits up, groaning. “Already?”

“Yeah. You still wanna help fly?”

“What kinda stupid-ass question,” she grumbles, standing up and running a hand through her disheveled hair. “Sorry. Not your fault I’m cranky. Let’s get home.”

“Yeah.” Poe helps her to the pilot’s chair and covers her with the edges of the blanket he left behind. He perches on the armrest to her right. “Okay, the yoke is right in front of you. I’ve got everything else, just hold us steady and put ‘er down gentle, all right?”

Jess nods and takes hold of the yoke with both hands. “Just give me degrees, like you did on the way up.”

“Sure.” Poe bites his lip. “This landing is the only thing standing between us and the medbay. We nail it, we’re home free.”

She rolls her shoulders to loosen the tense muscles. “We’ve got this.”

The shuttle slows out of hyperspace, the planet’s surface stretching beneath them.

Jess keeps the shuttle on a steady path as it burns through the atmosphere. Poe adjusts the controls in response to the changing gravity and air resistance. When they’re within range, he comms the base.

“Ground control, this is Black Leader and Blue Three, approaching from the southeast, over.”

Force, does his voice really sound that scratchy and exhausted?

“Black Leader, this is ground control. Are you two all right?” Najmah, a human a few years older than Poe, is on the comms today, a shade of worry coloring her distinctive voice.

“Negative, Najmah. Pava’s got a rib injury, damage to both eyes, and several other wounds, so she’ll need medical attention as soon--”

Jess leans towards the comm. “Dameron’s got a dislocated shoulder, finger injuries, and a busted face, so I think what he _meant_ to say is that we’ll _both_ need medical attention as soon as we land. Thanks for asking, Najmah.”

“I was getting to that,” Poe mumbles.

“Stars,” she says, and Poe can practically see her shaking her head in disbelief. “Wait if-- who’s flying?”

“Uh, it’s a joint effort. You got a place for us to land?”

“South runway, landing pad three. You sure you can land that thing? We can have you dock onto a transport in atmo if we need to.”

Poe huffs with frustration at having his piloting skill doubted again, especially after screwing up the takeoff. But if he’s being honest, he and Jess do have what it takes to land. Probably. Jess turns her head toward him and nods.

“We can do it,” he answers.

“Copy that. It’ll be good to have you two back with us. May the Force be with you.”

Najmah means it, even if ground control said it nearly every time. It was a secret between them and the pilots that replying _may the Force be with you too_ was code that you were under duress or otherwise wanted to alert the base that something was wrong. Giving Poe and Jess the chance to use it after their stint as hostages only makes sense.

“Y’know, I think it already is. Back at you, Najmah. Over.”

Landing pad three is just barely visible in the distance. Poe can’t remember the last time he was anxious to get out of a cockpit and onto the ground; usually it’s the other way around. Something mechanical inside of Poe takes over, and he’s flipping switches and pressing buttons and giving instructions to Jess as though he’s a droid designed for the job instead of a human mess of emotion. All his fears and hopes and doubts take a back seat to meters and degrees and seconds.

The shuttle sways and dips as Jess gets a feel for the gentle pressure that the yoke needs in order to guide the shuttle to the landing pad Poe describes. He trusts her completely, though, after everything they’ve been through together, and guessing from the way she responds to his instructions with no hesitation, it’s mutual.

The landing pad seems to rush up to meet them. He adjusts the stabilizers, there’s a bump and a slight lurch, and the shuttle comes to a stop.

Jess leans back in the seat and sighs deeply. “We did it.”

Poe blinks. It hasn’t quite sunk it yet. “Wow. Yeah.” He lowers the ramp and stands up. “Great job, Jess.”

“You, too. Kriff, it’s nice to be on solid ground.”

Putting his good arm around her, he helps her out of the pilot’s chair and towards the exit. A team of medtechs helps them down the ramp. Warm, gentle hands lift him onto a repulsorlift stretcher, and a droid beeps as it scans for his vitals. He closes his eyes and lets exhaustion takes over, falling asleep before they even reach the medbay.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to [StarMaple](http://archiveofourown.org/users/StarMaple/works) for beta reading this chapter!

The light blur of a hallway smells of bleach and bacta as a rusty-voiced med droid guides Rey’s hoverchair through the medbay. Luke and the med techs had insisted she use the chair, even though the worst of the hibernation sickness was over, and she had reluctantly accepted and gone with the droid, too tired to argue. They turn a corner into a room containing two dark blurs that Rey infers to be beds. Letting go of her frustration with the carbonite’s effect on her vision, she turns her attention to the Force. 

There, in the far bed, is a familiar fiery warmth that glows like stars and daring and hope, a bright presence that, to Rey, feels like home. 

“Jess!” Rey jumps up from the hoverchair, ignoring a sudden touch of dizziness in her hurry, and runs to the bed. “Jess, are you all right?” 

“Rey?” Jess sounds disoriented, and Rey feels her confusion in the Force. “Really? But--how--what happened? Am I hearing voices, or--” 

Eyes closed, and guided by the Force alone, Rey leans towards the bright glow and presses her lips to her lovers’. Reassured, Jess leans up into Rey’s kiss with a passionate intensity. Force, she’s missed this. She could have lost Jess forever, but now she’s safe and warm and  _ here _ . Except for the rough scab on her lower lip, Jess’s mouth is the same as it always is, just as perfect as it should be. Rey feels Jess reach a hand up to the back of her head and pull her close. 

The rusty-voiced droid interrupts: “Please, Rey, for your health I must insist that you lie down and rest until the hibernation sickness has taken its course.” 

Startled, Rey looks towards the fuzzy outline of the embarrassed droid and nods. Jess is still holding onto her, reluctant to let go. “Would it be all right if I moved these beds together?” 

“I will move the bed. Please, do not attempt to push it.” 

“I mean, I wouldn’t even have to touch it, I--” Rey starts to protest, but the droid is already pushing the empty bed closer to Jess. Rey suppress an amused smile: earlier, she was strong enough to restrain Kylo Ren long enough to protect Finn, and now she’s apparently too helpless to move a bed a couple meters? “Well, thanks.” 

Once the beds are touching, she climbs into hers, settles into the pillows with a sigh of comfort, and reaches for Jess. She’s still there, really there. Underneath the sterile medbay smell is a familiar hint of the shampoo that’s scented like some Dandoranian fruit Rey had never heard of. Somehow they find each other’s hand and intertwine their fingers, and Jess gives her a warm squeeze. Wanting to be alone with Jess, Rey turns toward the med droid. “Could you, uh, give us some space?” 

“As long as you remain in stable condition, certainly.” The droid pauses in the doorway. “Shall I ignore any elevated pulse readings within normal ranges for the time being?” 

Jess snickers, and Rey can’t help but smile. “Perfect, thanks.” 

Jess reaches out and feels Rey’s face. “I can’t believe it’s really you. He took you, he-- ” She sends a pang of fear through the Force. “How did you escape?”

Rey reaches to Jess, in turn, placing a hand on Jess’s cheek. “It’s really me, babe. Luke found Kylo’s shuttle and cut him off before he could take me on board. Finn found us and undid the carbon freezing. Waking up was awful, though. I didn’t know where I was, I thought I might be alone with Kylo, or Kylo and Snoke, and I couldn’t see.” 

The beds creak as Jess rolls closer, facing Rey and putting a comforting arm around her. “Aw, babe. I hate the idea of that sleemo being anywhere near you.” 

Rey leans into the embrace. “Me, too. So Luke and Finn and I fought Kylo, and Luke and Finn were injured, but we won. We took Kylo’s shuttle here.” 

“Are they all right?” 

Rey nods before remembering Jess can’t see her any more than she can see Jess. “They are now. Finn used his healing powers and fell asleep on the shuttle.” Rey smiles. “He wanted to heal me before himself. I told him no way-- hibernation sickness wears off on its own. Lightsaber wounds don’t. But I guess if he put self-preservation before helping everyone else, he wouldn’t be a very good Jedi.” 

“He’s not the only one, babe.” 

Jess is right. They’re silent a moment. “Yeah.” 

“Rey,” she whispers. “I was afraid we’d never see each other again.” 

Rey hesitates. She wouldn’t admit this to many people. “I was afraid, too,” she murmurs through a throat tight with emotion. “I felt you hurting, and I thought you were dying and I couldn’t save you. They could have killed you, babe, he  _ would  _ have, if--” She squeezes her eyes shut and hugs Jess closer. 

Jess strokes her hair, comforting her. “Shhh, babe. It’s okay, we made it, I’m all right.” 

“Are you really all right? 

“Eh, most of it’s pretty superficial. A couple more dunks in the bacta tank will heal my ribs, and I’ll set up a few visits with a psytech. I just… I still can’t see. Maybe my eyes’ll heal completely, maybe they won’t, but I’m trying not to let myself think about that right now.  I mean--” Rey can hear the smirk in Jess’s voice-- “what’ll I do if I can’t wake up to the sight of your gorgeous face in my bed every morning?” 

“Now you’re just flattering me.” Rey slides her hand down Jess’s back to the curve of her cute ass. “You’re the one who suggested trying sex with the lights off. Something about how you didn’t need to see me to ‘absorb the full experience of my beauty’, was it?” 

“Hmm.” Jess sounds mischievous and eager, making Rey’s heart beat faster. “It was a hypothesis, but it needed testing.” 

Jess leans over to kiss Rey, but she bonks her nose on Rey’s forehead, and they fall apart in a fit of giggles. 

“Ow. Okay, that was smoother in my head,” Jess admits. 

“Babe, I’m thrilled to be in bed with you again, but you’ve definitely had enough pain for this week and probably the rest of your life. Are you sure--” Rey begins, but Jess puts a finger to Rey’s lips, guessing their location more accurately this time. 

_ “Shh.” _ She whispers closely, as though colluding on a secret plot, and strokes Rey’s cheek. “And I definitely haven’t had enough of you this week, so if you’re sure, I’m sure.” 

“Oh, I’m sure.” Rey swings a leg over Jess’s hips, straddling her, and rests her forearms and knees on the mattress around Jess. “‘Sides, we can’t disappoint the nosy med droids, can we?” She begins a line of kisses from just under Jess’s ear down towards her collarbone, pulling the medbay robes aside for access to the bacta-smooth skin underneath. 

“Well, when you put it that way,” Jess answers sarcastically, settling in on her back and opening the front of Rey’s robe. She slips her hands in and caresses Rey’s ass, then up her back as Rey’s trail of kisses moves down from Jess’s neck to her breasts. 

Rey takes her time enjoying Jess’s soft breasts, kissing in circles around them and teasing the nipples with her tongue until they perk upright. Jess moans and arches up as Rey goes back and forth between them, sucking at her nipples with just a hint of teeth. She was right, there is something different about going by touch and sound alone instead of by sight. Jess cups Rey’s breasts in her hands and gives them a gentle squeeze.  

_ “Mmm.” _ Rey feels herself flushing with arousal, igniting warmth between her legs. Jess’s belly is smooth under her lips as she continues to lavish her with kisses. Jess runs her fingers through Rey’s hair, sending a shiver over her scalp. With her tongue, Rey parts the warm folds to lick Jess’s clit, making her gasp and squirm. 

“Rey,” she pants, “you’re so good to me-- come up here. I wanna hold you.” 

“Aww, you have a sappy side after all,” Rey teases as she sits up and climbs forward. 

“Don’t spread it around.” Jess wraps her arms around Rey and holds her close. Rey is careful to hold herself up and not to put any weight on Jess’s ribs. Spreading her legs, Jess presses the front of her vulva up against Rey’s. 

They kiss, sloppy and intense, all the pain of missing each other now converted into passion. In Jess’s arms, with her lover’s aura flaming up to meet hers, Rey feels safe and alive. With their mouths and breasts pressed together, Rey rubs Jess’s vulva with her own. Her body warms with pleasure and need.  A slow, purposeful rhythm swells into a passionate grinding, and it’s just the two of them there in the dark, their moans and heat and friction. 

Jess comes with a wordless shudder, gripping Rey tight against her. Rey’s climax washes over her, a blissful pulsing that leaves her feeling like she’s floating among the stars. 

She sinks into the bed next to Jess. Both of them are breathing hard. 

“Thanks, babe,” Jess says tenderly. “I missed you so much.” 

“I missed you, too.” She puts an arm around Jess and nuzzles her neck. The fiery glow of Jess’s Force signature blends with the glow of the contentment and pleasure she’s radiating. 

“Thanks for rescuing us.” 

“Of course! You mean the galaxy to me, Jess. Of course I want you to be all right.” 

“I’m getting there,” Jess says, and Rey can hear her smile. “I’m better now that you’re with me.” 


	17. Chapter 17

Poe swims upward, kicking gently against the warm bacta. A harness, modified to keep out of the way of his shoulder, pulls him up and drags him the rest of the way out of the tank. Poe can hardly yank the breath mask off his face fast enough-- honestly, after the water torture yesterday morning, it’s a relief he didn’t panic when the med droids put it over his face, or when they submerged him in the bacta. How soon do flashbacks and panic attacks start after trauma? He’ll have to ask a psytech about that. Maybe the one that helped him after the Jakku mission went wrong a few years ago is still around.  

The medbay air is cold against his dripping wet skin, and he shivers before the med techs can lower him onto a stretcher and wrap a fluffy white towel around him. He wipes bacta solution off his face and pushes back the hair that’s plastered itself to his forehead. The less water on his face, the better.

 A scanning droid hovers around him, paying special attention to his shoulder and his face. Poe closes his eyes, wraps the towel tighter around him, and tries to stop shivering. The medbay is a loud, chaotic jumble of beeping droids, humming machinery, voices of several species of medtechs, snippets of urgent instructions and calm reassurance, and, barely audible, a voice that Poe would recognize anywhere.

“--he okay? Can I see him now?”

Poe opens his eyes. “Finn?”

The door to the medbay slides open, and Finn steps through, looking exhausted and worried.

“Finn!”

Finn’s searching, tired eyes zero in on Poe with a mix of concern and relief, and he rushes over to him, stopping just short of throwing his arms around him. “Poe, sweetheart, are you all right?”

Poe wraps his arm around Finn, leaning on him. _Is_ he all right? That’s anyone’s guess. But his darling is here, and Poe presses his cheek against Finn’s clean Jedi robes and the warm skin underneath. “Finn. You’re safe.”

Finn sets down the duffel bag he was carrying and cautiously returns the embrace. His strong, gentle arms stroke Poe’s back and make his shivering stop. “Yeah, sweetheart. Me, Rey, Luke, Jess-- we’re all safe. Are you okay? Are you hurting?”

“I’m just thankful you’re okay,” he says, and he means it. Finn’s warm, calming presence quiets his worry, and when the med techs interrupt them and float Poe to a bed down the hall, Finn stays right by his side.

Once the med techs have left the room, Finn sits on the edge of the bed and helps Poe finish drying off and change into a medbay robe. They don’t say anything, but Finn’s comforting touch and the little smiles between them say it all. When Poe is thoroughly dry and wrapped in blankets, Finn unzips his duffel bag and pulls out the comforter from the bed he and Poe share. “I brought this for you,” he says, spreading it over Poe.

“Can you--” Poe yawns. “Can you stay with me?”

“Of course.” Finn smiles and runs his fingers through Poe’s hair. “Oh!” He reaches back into the bag. “I also brought you this.”

“Thanks, darling.” He hands Poe a warm thermos that, when opened, smells of fragrant spices. The familiar blue-green milk is sweet and savory and warms Poe’s insides.

He looks at Finn, smiling and kind, and a guilty feeling nags at him. He hesitates, but he has to know. “So if you could tell what they were doing to me...” He takes a deep breath. “Did it hurt you?”

Finn’s face falls. “Sweetheart, it’s not your fault.”

Poe reaches for Finn’s hand. “I’m so sorry.”

Finn lets Poe take his hand, frowns at the raw nailbeds that the bacta hasn’t completely healed, and raises his eyebrows at Poe. _“You’re_ sorry for _me?”_

“Okay, point taken.”

“You’re looking better, but I still want to heal you. Is that okay? Or would you rather sleep first?”

“I love it when you heal me, darling. Go ahead.”

So Poe sits up, and Finn climbs behind him on the bed, settling in with his back to the headboard and Poe resting against his chest. Poe pulls the blanket closer and warms his hands on the thermos.

Finn takes a few quiet seconds to enter his meditative state, and soon he’s reaching around Poe and slipping a hand under the robe to touch Poe’s shoulder. His touch is soft and warm, and there’s a slight tingle of energy as the Force flows between them. Poe yawns, feeling comfortable and safe.

The healing energy of the Light Side saturates Poe’s shoulder, knitting together the damaged joint and soothing the swollen inflammation. Finn’s chest rises and falls steadily with the rhythm of his breath, and Poe can hear his heartbeat. He takes another delicious sip of the spiced milk. The healing is a slow process, and Poe suspects that Finn’s more tired than he’s letting on, but there’s no hurry. He’s enjoying this time in his husband’s arms.

“How does that feel?” asks Finn, moving his hand away.

Poe sits up and slowly rotates his arm, stretching the joint in all directions. “Good as new. You’re a miracle worker.”

Finn runs his fingers through Poe’s hair and eases him back down onto Finn’s chest. “What about your fingers?” When Poe lifts his hand, Finn takes it and gives a sad sigh. “I can’t believe they did this to you. You’re so brave and strong, sweetheart.”

“I’m brave?” Poe cranes his neck to look up at Finn. “I didn’t have much of a choice. You didn’t have to come rescue me, you know.”

“I know.” Finn presses Poe’s fingertips to his lips. “I chose to.”

And before Poe can think of a response, Finn is already lost in the Force, kissing Light and love into him. Back on Kylo’s shuttle, Poe had felt like he might never warm up again, yet here he is, snuggled up to the love of his life, under their special blanket, with hot spiced milk, comfortably warm as could be.

“I love you, darling,” he says softly.

Finn sets down his hand-- the nail beds are healed, and strong new nails are beginning to grow over them-- and picks up his other. “I love you, too.”


	18. Chapter 18

Jess wraps her arm around Rey and melts into the mess of pillows piled high on their beds in the medbay. Rey is warm, soft skin over solid muscle, and Jess could almost forget about Finn and the med droids in the room and simply get lost in adoring Rey. Jess can’t sense the Force, but she can sense Rey relaxing into it as Finn works on healing the last traces of hibernation sickness. 

“There we go. Open your eyes for me?” Finn asks. 

There’s a pause, and Rey lets out a bright, golden laugh. “You never stop amazing me, Finn. Vision’s good as new, thanks.” 

“You’re welcome! All right, it’s your turn, Jess.” 

“Ready when you are.” She smiles in his direction. 

“Wow, babe, I almost forgot how gorgeous you were,” Rey teases her. 

“Oh, shush.” 

Finn’s chair scrapes against the floor as he drags it to the other side of the bed, and there’s the warm, gentle pressure of Finn’s hand over her closed eyes. What he’s doing feels different from what he did to her knee during the exchange with Kylo Ren: then, it was almost as though she could feel her body piecing itself back together. Now, she can’t feel anything. Wait, no, maybe her eyes are a little less itchy than they were? She’s not sure. Rey takes her hand and gives it a comforting squeeze, and Jess squeezes back. 

“Hmm.” Finn takes his hand away.  “Okay, Jess. That’s as much as I can do. How is it?” 

She opens her eyes, and there’s the small medbay room, and Finn and Rey’s expressions of concern on either side of her. Everything looks perfectly bright and crisp and entirely normal. She can see. 

_ She can see, _ and she can take in the world around her, and read, and look at Rey’s lovely sleepy face and bedhead, and she can fly again, and-- 

Her newly-regained vision blurs again, not because of the injury, but because she’s going to cry. 

“Thank you so much,” she says, voice breaking. Rey throws her arms around her and rests her head on Jess’s shoulder. 

“Of course!” Finn smiles, bright as the sunshine filling the room. A knock on the door takes Jess out of the moment.

“Come in!” Rey calls. The door slides open, and Poe guides a hoverchair through the doorway. Snap and Kare are right behind him, dashing over to the side of the makeshift double-wide bed. 

“Jess! You’re alive!” Snap surrounds her in a bear hug, only letting go to give Kare a turn. Force, it’s good to be back among friends, where touch is warm and gentle and wanted. 

“Right? Believe me, I’m just as surprised as you are.” She grins up at them. 

“You have no idea how devastated we all were, thinking you two were dead,” says Kare. “No dying allowed, okay?” 

Jess gives her a mock salute. “Yes, Captain Kun.”

“Roger that,” Poe adds with a grin. It’s the first time Jess has laid eyes on him since the few minutes together on the Star Destroyer, she realizes, that conversation when they’d promised to defend the Resistance no matter what happened to each other. He looks much better rested, wrapped up in terrycloth medbay robes, and sitting next to Finn. Of course, a lot happened to both of them since then, and some of it isn’t the sort of thing that vanishes with bacta and a Jedi’s touch. But they’re both smiling, and she knows they’ll be okay. It might take a while, but they’re still here for each other, and Rey and Finn are here for them, too. Eventually, they  _ will  _ be okay. 

“Since  _ somebody  _ didn’t tell us there was a rescue mission--” Snap puts an affectionate hand on Finn’s shoulder-- “we didn’t get to come along, but we did make it back to the asteroid belt to look for clues once Finn told us you were out there.” He speaks into a commlink: “Come on in.” 

An excited beeping blur of white and orange and an excited whirring ball of white and green zip into the room. DD-6 rolls up to Jess’s side, and Jess can just barely make out the rush of Binary that tells her Dee-Dee is relieved to see her and hopes she never gets lost again. 

“Aww, who’s a good droid?” She reaches down and pets the droid’s dome head, and it tries to nuzzle her but makes an awkward mechanical motion instead. Adorable. 

“Bee-Bee! I know, I know, I’m just glad  _ you’re _ okay!” Poe tries to calm down his droid, without much success. 

“We recovered your X-wings, too,” Kare adds. “They didn’t bother destroying them. Apparently as soon as they blocked off the tunnel and took you, they abandoned the site completely.”

“So we don’t have to worry about the First Order setting up a base so close to us?” Jess asks. 

Kare nods. “Right.”  

“That’s a relief,” says Poe. “It also means our previous strategy was working, and I’ll be happy to get back to beating the First Order as soon as I’m allowed out of the medbay.” 

“Same here,” Jess adds. “We can’t let them get away with that.” 

“Absolutely not,” Kare agrees. “But it’s important that you’re both healthy before you get back into action.” 

“And on that note, we should probably head out and let you rest,” says Snap. “Is there anything we can do for you before we go?” 

Once Jess, Rey, Finn, and Poe convince him and Kare that they’re fine, really, but they’ll be sure to ask if they need anything, they say their goodbyes. Snap and Kare head back to the command center, Poe lets Finn push his hoverchair back to their room down the hall, and the droids leave for the hangar. 

Rey and Jess snuggle into their pile of pillows and blankets, and Jess breathes a deep sigh. 

Rey turns to her with a curious expression. “What’re you thinking, babe?” 

“I… hmm. I’m surprised how content I feel.” Jess pauses. “Only a couple days ago, it felt like everything I love was being destroyed. And now I’m here, and I can walk and see, Poe’s alive and okay, Dee-Dee and Blue Three are all right, and most importantly, you’re safe. And you’re here with me.”

“I sure am.” Rey squeezes her hand. “You’re brave. And you’re strong. You made it.” 

“I guess I did. But only because you’re brave and strong, too.” The way that Rey looks down and smiles at Jess’s words is precious. “I mean it, babe. I guess… I guess maybe choosing to have hope wasn’t so absurd after all.” 


	19. Chapter 19

Rey and Luke walked through the warm sunshine to the familiar field near the Resistance base. Small white flowers danced in time with the breeze. Since coming to the Resistance, finding her chosen family, and learning how to become more aware of her own feelings, Rey had become much better at opening up to people and showing vulnerability. Still, she hesitated, choosing her words carefully. 

“Luke, I don’t think I thanked you for coming on the rescue mission with us. It meant a lot to me that you were willing to do that. I know we did the right thing-- Finn and I, for going, I mean-- but it was still pretty reckless of us. And you didn’t have to risk your life for us, but you did. So… thank you.” 

There was a bit of silence as Luke trudged on, pensive. 

She knew he was thinking, choosing his words as carefully as she’d chosen hers. Eventually he broke the silence. 

“When you found me on Ach-to, I believed that I was fulfilling my destiny there. Following in the footsteps of those who taught me, accepting my failure and staying out of conflict. You convinced me that there was another way, that the galaxy still had a place for me.” Luke took a deep breath before continuing. “I can’t say whether Obi-Wan and Yoda were right to do what they did. And I don’t know if things would have turned out differently if they themselves  had fought wholeheartedly for the Light instead of pinning all their hopes on me. But I’m still a part of this fight, and I defend the people who matter to me.” 

Rey looked into his eyes, deeply touched. “Thank you.” 

“Besides,” Luke says with a twinkle in his eye. “How could I live with myself if you two had come back short a hand or two?” 

Rey laughs. “Sounds unpleasant.” 

“You don’t know the half of it.” 

They reach the flat place under the trees where they practice meditation. It’s cooler in the shade, but still sunlit.  

“I know it makes sense for you to expect people to leave,” says Luke. “But I meant it when I said I’m here for you.” 

“I believe you.” Rey nods. “And I think I believe in myself a little more now, too. I’ve been afraid that I’m going to abandon someone-- you know, because of my parents and all. I never wanted to hurt someone like that, and that’s made it hard to get close to people. Especially Jess. But this whole mess made  me see that not only are there people who won’t give up on me, but I don’t give up on my people, either.”

She pauses, unable to contain her smile. “Don’t tell Jess this, but, uh. I’ve started to look at engagement rings. I think forever is a promise I’m ready to make.” 

Luke beams at her. “Well, congratulations! You two are an adorable couple, and anyone can see that you make each other happy.” 

“We really do. I don’t know if it’s the Force or my own feelings, but somehow I just know that marriage is right for us. And Luke, I’m probably getting ahead of myself, but Jess has talked before about wanting a traditional Dandoranian wedding someday. I’ve researched it some, and I would love to have you as my father in the ceremony when the time comes. ” 

“I would be honored.” 

“Y’know, I never really thought about a wedding or planned it all out in my daydreams growing up, but now that I have someone to marry, it’s a lot more exciting.” 

“Oh no, you’re going to distract us all from meditation with pictures of dresses and cake, aren’t you?” Luke groans. 

Rey laughs.  “Yeah, better get used to it. But at least it’ll be nicer than the memories of Kylo I used to distract us with?” 

“That’s not exactly a high bar to clear.” Luke’s eyes are smiling despite his making a grumpy face. 

“True. He’s a very unpleasant person. And this latest stunt didn’t exactly endear him to me, either. But as much as I don’t like that he’s still out there, he’ll leave us alone now if he has any sense.” 

“The Dark Side has little to do with sense, Rey. Hate and spite don’t flow from reason. But I think you’re right that he is less of a danger. The Force is unclear on whether he will die from his injuries, or become more entrenched in his evil, or perhaps even turn back to the Light. It’s not destiny; it’s his choice. I don’t expect him to choose redemption, but a lot of people didn’t expect it for Vader, either.” 

“I guess we’ll just have to wait, and keep fighting for the Light in the meantime, right?” 

“Absolutely.” Luke puts his hand on her shoulder, and he looks at her with kind, earnest eyes. “And Rey? I want you to know that I’m proud of you. For going after Jess, for your skill and persistence in fighting, and especially for choosing to risk sacrificing yourself. I’m proud, not just to have you as my apprentice, but for the person you’ve become.”

“Luke, I… thank you.” 

“I mean it.” He sits on a dry patch of grass and tucks his legs under him. “Now then, let’s start with breathwork and then add a mantra, shall we?” 

“Sounds great.” Rey folds into a position for meditation, closes her eyes, and feels the filtered sun patches on her skin and the solid ground under her. The Force is rich with the life of the trees, and the grass, and Luke. She finds her breath, finds her center, and gets lost in the peace of the Force. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So life has been a mess (moving! two jobs! possible homelessness? other changes!) and I haven't given this fic the attention it wants. Before you ask why I'm marking it complete when I'm clearly missing a chapter-- I know. The original plan was for the last chapter to have Finn/Poe smut and a conversation between Finn and Leia (she is adorably proud of him, and she totally expected him and Rey to leave whether she gave permission or not). I haven't ruled out writing that, but the main plot of the story is complete as-is, and I don't feel like it's fair to keep the people who only read complete works hanging for another indefinite period. Plus I'm at the stage where you read your earlier writing and want to set it on fire, so that's not exactly motivating lol. Thanks for reading, buddies! <3


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